Lilly
by CuteMcBeauty
Summary: Hook returns from the Enchanted Forest to find Emma in New York, hoping to jog her memory and take up from where they left off, to find that his heart's First Mate has added to his "crew", his parting gift given to her before the whole missing year. But this is no ordinary little gift. It comes with a mission... Rated T for possible foul language and some sexual contexts.
1. Prologue

The day Captain Hook tapped the door of Emma Swan's New York apartment, he wasn't expecting too much of an affectionate hello. He'd gone through hell and back to find her, and he finally had, after a whole year apart; he also knew that she did not remember him. It would take a little bit of work to jog her memory. But after what they had had, he had his hopes on high. That wonderful interlude, the intimacy, the clean, crisp feel of white cotton sheets grazing their bodies as they came into one couldn't have meant another "one time thing". If he had loved her insanely before then, that night had completely ruined his chances at ever loving any other woman ever again. She was far more to him than just another conquer to stubbornly follow from realm to realm. To him, Emma Swan represented fresh breathing air, a chance at living in the light, beauty, spirit and heart: His one true love. So the sight of her alone, after a whole year of not seeing her and after what they had had, would certainly be enough to just fill him with joy.

He missed her terribly. So, so terribly.

Love was the most powerful magic of all, he had heard once. And he prayed it was still in there, in Emma's heart, no matter how frightened or disoriented she might be upon seeing him again. He knew firsthand just how hard it could be to be let into Emma's little secret garden, her heart a barrier surrounded with barbed wire; But he had been the only man to expertly climb those walls and jump over them into her heart… and what a glorious place he had dwelt in while that lasted! He was confident he'd still have another fair chance at it.

So he sighed deeply… and tapped.

No… he banged on the door. Hard. Twice.

Soft footsteps were heard as she approached from within and opened the door. His heart raced.

There she was…

There they were.

The smile on his face rose up into his cheeks and went down just as fast when he saw her holding that little baby girl, no older than maybe two or three months of age… and the most beautiful little thing he'd ever seen. A baby girl that casually sported a full head of unruly black hair. Lots and lots of it.

And massive ocean blue eyes to match.

Oh… darn.

"S…Swan?" He frowned.

Well… fuck. Three hundred years alive, an expert philanderer, and not even once had he hit the jackpot. Until Emma.


	2. First and last

"Regina, we're here for a reason, love, Pan's curse… can you stop it, or should we all start preparing our souls?" Hook chuckled. "Because mine's gonna take some time."

Regina swallowed hard. "No… I can't." She turned to look at the whole gang. "There is a price to pay. This was my doing, and the price is mine." She turned a teary eyed face to Emma.

"What are you talking about?" Emma replied.

Regina explained that when she first held Pan's curse, she saw in her mind what the price for saving them all from a fate worse than death would be: She and anyone who was born in the Enchanted Realm that resided within the boundaries of the town of Storybrooke would be swept back to their home… and that did not include Henry.

For two people who had started off as pretty lethal foes Emma was truly sympathetic of Regina's plight. She was Henry's mother and she could not bear the thought of being parted from him… or anyone she had come to know in this little hero-villain convoy of people.

"I have to undo what I started." Regina sighed sad. "We will all go back to the Enchanted Forest. All of us… except Henry. He will stay here because he was born here…"

Emma gasped, alarmed. "Alone?" She sometimes forgot she too had been born far from her earthly realm.

"No…" Regina approached Emma. "You will take him. Because you are the savior. You were created to break the curse."

When Emma stated that she'd go with all of them, Regina explained that it was impossible, for it was the price of saving the lives of everyone.

"But… no."

"The best and only thing I can do, is stall it. Hold it back for one day and no more." She sniffed. "Tomorrow at this very hour, Emma, you and Henry must be in your car, crossing the town line… never to look back. And there is still something I haven't told you…"

"Oh no, what now?" The savior wept.

"When the curse washes over us, it will send us all back and everything will be gone… including your memories. But my gift to you is that I can do what I did for everyone else in this town, and give you new ones, memories that will account for every little missing day."

"But they won't be real…"

"No… but your future will be."

Emma sighed deep… and didn't even turn to look at the faces of her loved ones, among them, the formerly "dread" pirate Captain Hook, whose sullen face fell to the floor to conceal the tears that had already begun to form.

oooooooooooooooooooo

Emma stared at the man that stood outside her door in the hall, and didn't know what stunned her most; whether it was his rugged appearance, clad in what seemed to be an eighteenth century English pirate-like garb, or the fact that there was something eerily comforting about his entire persona, almost as if she knew this guy. And he was kind of cute. No… he was damn gorgeous.

But… a stranger nonetheless.

And he felt rather familiar, yet she didn't really know this dude, or at least not that she recalled.

His first reaction as she opened the door was an ear-splitting Cheshire cat grin that depicted legitimate glee; but when his eyes settled on Lilly, the grin disappeared and his entire demeanor was that of a man who no longer seemed to know even his own name.

"Swan…" He whispered, his eyes fixed on her baby daughter.

"Can I help you?" She frowned. _Creepy guy_…

Killian's eyes went from the baby to her and back to the little one. "You… this…" He swallowed hard. "I…"

"Look, I got to get my kid to school before nine, pal, so whatever it is you want, spit it out 'cause I really haven't the time!" She snapped.

Killian swallowed. Their dalliance… just one time, a year ago…

The child did look the right age…. Considering the date.

And her hair was dark… and those eyes were certainly not Emma's.

_Bullseye._

He shook his head and huffed, trying to focus on his mission. "Listen your family needs your help…. There was a new curse, their entire kingdom was ripped back to Storybrooke and…"

"My family? What are you talking about? My family's right here, who the hell are you?"

Killian blinked repeatedly, still stealing glances at the little one in Emma's arms. "I'm… an old friend. Little more than an old friend, actually, I…" He scratched behind his ear.

"You have one more chance mister, then I'm closing the door and calling the cops."

"Emma…"

The blonde girl frowned and gasped. "How do you know my name?"

"Lass, I know you better than you know yourself."

"You are a stalker!"

Killian ran his one hand through his hair and bit his lower lip. _Now I know how Bae must have felt, finding out about Master Henry_, he thought. His eyes shot directly into Emma's.

"Swan, who's the father of this child?" He managed to whisper.

Emma's mouth dropped open. "That is none of your goddamned business!" She shouted. "Now leave because I WILL call the police!"

"Don't!" He begged, holding one hand up. "Look, I know this seems crazy, but you have to listen to me, you have to remember…"

"Remember what!?" She sneered.

He swallowed hard. "Who you are. Where you come from and who your parents are…"

Her expression saddened. Lilly gargled and Killian grinned at the sound.

"You really don't know what you're talking about, now if you'll excuse me I…"

"Because you think you're an orphan and that has haunted you your whole life?"

Emma huffed. "Ok, now you're really freaking me out, mister."

Killian swallowed. "Please, I'd never hurt you, love… just, hear me out." He reached into his pocket and produced a little blue bottle. "You know something isn't right, Swan, your whole life, or what you think has been you life, you have felt it in your gut is just wrong. You and I, we last saw each other a year ago and…"

"A year ago I was in Boston, till a fire destroyed my apartment and killed my boyfriend and I decided to move to New York to have a fresh start with my son."

A boyfriend? Regina gave her a boyfriend memory to account for… ?well, ok. She had to account for it some way.

Hook looked at the baby in her arms. "Regina really did a number on you…" He smiled as the baby's eyes locked onto his and gargled again.

"You're a crazy person, or a liar or both!" Emma sneered.

"I prefer dashing rapscallion. But nevertheless… if you want to know who you really are, who your parents are… drink this."

She winced. "Drink the thing the crazy guy just gave me? No thank you!"

"Do you really want to live a life of lies?"

"Lies? What lies? You come here, a complete stranger, talking about my parents, their kingdom, a curse! Do you even know what you sound like?"

He stopped cold and nodded. "Like a madman, I'm sure. But I know you, Swan. You know there's something off." He begged. "Trust your gut, Emma… it will tell you what to do…"

By then, Lilly had the tiny bottle firmly gripped in her tiny hand without either Killian or Emma noticing.

Emma took a step towards him and gave him a shove. "You come her ever again and bother me, or my children and so help me god, you'll lose the other hand."

And she slammed the door shut.

Killian closed his eyes and gulped as he paced his way out of the building. This would take work.

And that child… that wee lass, he was sure she was his, as sure as his name was Killian Jones.

He fought tears as he paced away from the building.

He only hoped and prayed he had touched a fiber in her soul, deep enough that she might be able to at least have a go at drinking the potion and remembering that final night…

ooooooooooooooooo

He drifted away, far enough to not have to spend the last few hours thinking it was the last few hours. He stood, face to the bay, feeling unshed tears in his eyes while the Jolly Roger swayed and bobbed under his feet. Regina had managed to delay the curse for a whole day and that was actually no help at all.

Killian Jones hated goodbyes. It was a proven formula. His brother, his MIlah, countless crewmembers, Bae, his left hand… All had left a horrid path of ached debris that felt worse than the actual scars on his body.

And now his Swan.

Not that he'd really ever… had her, right? That kiss, it was probably one of Emma's quirks and she just wanted a quick thrill and… fuck, it turned his entire world upside down.

He already knew he was in love with her since the moment she jumped off the Jolly and nearly drowned. No…. he had been drawn to her from the very second he saw her as she pulled him out from under the corpses left by Cora's heart-pulling rampage. But it was far easier to pretend otherwise and to conceal his infatuation before she had pressed her lips to his. After that, it was as if someone had opened the floodgates and every single cell in his body now shamelessly gravitated around her.

No problem. Soon, he'd be back in the ocean, aboard his beloved and trusty Jolly, finding his crew, being a pirate again, following the stars, searching the high seas for spoils and riches, lots of realms yet to discover and treasure coves to plunder and… He didn't want it. Any of it. Not if it meant never seeing her again.

"Bloody hell…" He ran a hand down his face as a cold gush of wind blew inwards from the sea. Had none of them known of the curse detained in the woods for a few remaining hours, this would look like a perfect sunset, an immaculately beautiful evening that would lead to a glorious morning.

"Red at night, sailor's delight?"

Killian turned sharply and found Emma grinning at him as she boarded the ship.

He cleared his throat and turned to her trying as best he could to pretend he wasn't about to actually break down into a heap of messy sobs. "I… thought you'd be with your family…"

Emma sighed and walked around the ship, looking around. "I was. Told them I wanted to walk around the town for the night. I'm no good at goodbyes." She looked at him as she approached him, tucking her hands in her back pockets. "They usually hurt."

"Love, if they were pleasant, nobody would ever remember them."

She sighed. "And why do I want to remember this?" She looked at him ruefully. "Why, when I'm finally home, with family, with friends… now I have to forget you all? Why?"

He hoped for an answer. He wished it hard. But he had none.

He sighed and shrugged as he sat down on top of the wooden riser of the deck. "I've no bloody clue, lass. As soon as you figure that one out, savior, be sure to inform me." He looked at her. "Where is your boy?"

She sighed and joined him, sitting by his side. "With Regina. I figured that since she's doing this for us, she should spend all the time she can with him." She looked at Killian and grinned. "Question is, why are you here all by yourself?"

He smiled and Emma could see a mile away that it was skin deep. "In the words of a dear friend…" he turned to her, full smile, sad eyed and brow risen. "I'm no good at goodbyes."

That brought a grin out of the savior, and they both sat and looked at the sun for a few silent minutes before Emma spoke again. "Why would anyone be sad with a sunset like this?"

"Aye… It is indeed a wonder."

"It's glorious…"

"Mhh."

She turned her face at him. "What will you do, Killian?" She licked her lips. "Back to piracy? Sailing the high seas in this thing, one swashbuckling adventure after the other?"

He sighed and closed his eyes, before opening them in the direction of the setting sun. "I've thought of that all day, love. There's… really not much else for me to go back to, except that. It's what I am, it's all I know…"

"But you don't want to…" she turned his face to hers with her left hand and looked into his eyes intently. "I can tell…"

The feel of her hand on his cheek made him sizzle like bacon beneath her touch; or at least it felt like that.

"No. No I do not." He spoke, near a whisper. "Alas, love, the Enchanted Forest is not a place for a sailor to dwell. I am a man of the sea. I need the salt, the sand… I need…. The breeze. I'll whither without it." He turned back to the view. "And of course, there's that beautiful little extra I'll have to learn to live without…."

"Killian…" she whispered, placing her hand on his back and rubbing his back lightly before turning to look at the floorboards.

"I know. You'd choose otherwise if you could." He grinned, removing the hook and rubbing his face with hand and leather brace. "Alas, this time you have no choice."

"I never have one." She sobbed. "Never. I always get to be this or that… Never what I would choose or want…" She turned to him, eyes watering. "How can I go back to a life without all of… this?"

The change in her voice instantly made Killian turn and wrap her shoulders with his handless arm. She fell into his embrace and he didn't even give it a moment's thought before he pulled her into his chest, praying she wouldn't notice the tears in his own eyes as he leaned his chin on the top of her golden head.

"I wouldn't concern myself with that, Emma love…" He caressed her shoulder with his ringed hand. "You and Henry will have all the memories you need for a happy life. That's all we need to know, that you will be fine and that none of this madness will ever hurt you. You'll have the life of your dreams love, better than this one, maybe." His voice finally cracked. "Leave the burden of aching of the rest to those of us who lo…. Who care enough for you two to let you go to that happiness, no matter how unreal it may be." He pulled her away and held her at arm's length. "You're a tough lass, remember?" he smiled. "You'll make it, Swan. I've yet to se you fail…."

She smiled back and hugged him. "Ok who the hell are you and what did you do with the pirate?"

He grinned back. "Oh? Care much about the bloody pirate, do you?"

She shook her head. "He puzzles me. I can't figure him out quite like he does. I'd like to, though."

"Well, he's got you all figured out, lass. He knows you better than you know yourself…"

Emma sneered at him playfully. "Really? Just how much does he really know?"

"Well…" He shrugged. "He knows how you wrinkle your nose when you feel distrustful and how your eyes squint when you try to read into other people's thoughts. He knows that when you get your first cup of cocoa, you dip your finger into the cream and bring it to your lips to taste the cinnamon before you take the first sip. How you blink real fast when something surprises you. He knows you enjoy looking at the stars, a trait you two rather share, I gather… He also knows that sometimes you cry yourself to sleep, and…"

"How did you know that?" She swallowed.

"Slept in the bunks in this ship, love, or have you forgotten our lovely two week holiday in Neverland?" He smiled. "I'd sit for hours, watching you sleep… It was the only thing that gave me a sense of peace…"

"Killian…"

"And I also know you go to extreme measures to hide that beautiful soul of yours behind a wall of sarcasm and rejection." He tilted his head to the side with a shrug. "Takes one to know one, I suppose. But know this: There is no wall left in me. And I had hoped I…" He swallowed and looked at the floor. "I really had hoped I'd have the time to do what I set out to do, what I told you I would do. I wish I'd had the time to win your heart." He shook his head. "Capricious fates, aren't they? Where you will be torn from being here, where at least I can breathe the same air you breathe, which for me would be enough as opposed to a lifetime without you, Emma. I'd do anything to remain at your side, but… I can't and it's aching in places you will never know… And the biggest ache of all is, you will not know this at all. You won't even remember my name... or me."

By then, the savior was once again in tears… and so was he.

She stood up and pulled him up with her. As he rose his eyes to hers, she could almost see the now thinning red horizon in the distance reflected on them because they were filled with saline tears. She only grinned through her own sadness and she pulled him silently by the hook, to the captain's quarters, where he followed in silence until they descended into the small living area. She closed the trap door and turned to him, as he lit an oil lamp.

He turned to her. "Emma, why did you…?"

"Make love to me, Killian."

He frowned. "Come again?"

"You heard. Take me. I'm yours."

The man stood in shocked silence. "But… why?"

"Because you're right." She nodded, her lips pressed. "On all accounts. Because no one has ever seen so much and so deep into me, but you, you've done so from the get go and I am tired…. Really tired of pushing people away, of running from them… from myself." She took to steps towards him and he felt the very breath of him catch in his chest as she reached forward, cupping his jaw in her hand. "I'll be gone tomorrow… I won't remember you… but I want this." She smiled through her tears. "I do know how it aches, Hook. I've ached my whole life, with people I loved leaving me or going away, so I do know about your heartache, I'm not blind and I'm not immune to it. I've gone to great lengths to deny you this, and I want you to have it as well."

"What exactly did you deny me, Swan?" He replied in a whispery, shaky voice.

"My heart… you won it, a long time ago. It was yours before I even kissed you. But I was just… I don't know, stubborn I suppose, afraid to trust you because you'd probably leave after a week… and all this time, I've denied it to you. You are the only one who's ever seen beyond… So, I can't deny you any more, and if I'm to forget you…" she stepped forward and leaned up to reach his lips. "…I want you. This once. For the first and final time. For me… for us…"

Killian caressed her face and leaned in to meet her lips with his own, warmly, slowly, both of them crying soundly as their kiss intensified and they leaned back into his small bed, losing themselves in each other's loving embrace, garments falling off and away one by one. Killian held her, loved her… and made her his, entirely, completely… lovingly, feeling each rhythmic thrust, each contraction, each gasp and every single caress with every fiber of his soul. They were still joined as one when he released himself, emptying his entire being within her, the love of his life, for the first time and, it seemed, for the last time, hoping he'd flood her with at least a little bit of his own soul to take with her forever.

As he held her afterwards, neither one of them could sleep. They awaited for the dawn atop the deck, sitting at the bow of the Jolly Roger, bodies nude, skin to skin and wrapped in each other's arms, covered by a blanket as he held her, both silently waiting for the sun to rise. And as it did, tears came to his face again… because within a couple of hours, she'd be gone from his life… forever. He leaned his chin on her right shoulder and pulled her to him as he spoke into her ear. "There's not a day will go by that I won't think of you…"

She led a hand up her side, caressing the moppy black head of unruly hair. "Good."

And indeed, together with all the others, he accompanied her to the edge of town, where he witnessed through the haze of tears how his love was once again ripped from him by the sound of the revving engine, the curse bellowing on them from behind his back, and the thunderous sound of his own breaking heart.

The last thing she saw through the rear view mirror was her pirate, eyes dark, as he stared at her, before he was engulfed with all the others in a purple cloud.

And then he was gone…. From sight, from her teary eyes and from her memories.

But never from her heart.


	3. Changing dirty nappies

**WOW, THIS STORY'S STIRRING UP SOME AMAZING REACTIONS! THANKS TO THOSE POSTING REVIEWS, I TRULLY APPRECIATE IT! THIS CHAPTER IS A BIT LONG, BUT IT'S ALL FULL OF FLUFFY DADDY!KILLIAN FLUFF. AND IT'S KIND OF HE TURNING POINT FOR THE REST OF THE STORY.**

**THANKS TO ALL! I HOPE YOU CONTINUE READING AND POSTING YOUR DELIGHTFUL REVIEWS AND PROMPTS! =)**

"Gimme that, Lilly!" Emma grinned as she paced back down the hall, and took the little bottle from the baby girl, placing it on the kitchen counter.

Henry looked at her from the table, still deeply entranced with his bacon and eggs. "Who was that?"

"Oh, no one. Someone must have left the door open." Emma grinned at her son. "Hurry up kid, we have twenty-five minutes to get you to school."

Henry nodded, wiped his mouth with a napkin and ran off to change into his school uniform, while Emma sat on the couch to breastfeed her daughter. And as she did, she couldn't help but feel a tugging feeling about the man she had just dismissed out the door. There was something about him that was weirdly familiar, yet she was pretty sure she'd never met him before.

Her particular line of work had led her to meet and hear about all sorts of scumbags who would find ways to be privy of people's personal affairs; this guy could be one of many people skilled at learning the blacks and blues of others. The internet made life easy for hackers and spies alike, not to mention weird, creepy, leather clad stalkers with British accents and impossibly beautiful blue eyes. But still, he knew things about her that no detailed bank or insurance record could have told him: How she felt about her life in general, like something was missing. Only she knew how she felt. How did this guy ever…?

Eddie had been asleep in the apartment in Boston when she and Henry returned from the theater that night. The fire was swift and he never made it out. The memory had broken Emma's heart, but she always did wonder why she didn't have any photographs of him, not even in her wallet. And even in her mind, Eddie resembled this weird British guy quite a bit. She had become pregnant the night before the fire which prompted their move took place. Worse still, if the father of her daughter had perished in a fire, why wasn't she upset anymore? Where had the mourning gone, the ache and the sorrow of such a dreadful loss?

At that precise moment of thought, Lilly suckled hard and Emma winced. "Ow, easy kid, the goods aren't going anywhere…" She smiled at her baby daughter who, by the way, was ridiculously pretty from the very moment she came out her womb. That completely pulled her out of her train of thought, and after the little one was fed, burped and swaddled, she was placed in her bassinette for her hourly nap.

"Done!" Henry smiled as he picked up his school bag.

"Great, come on, let's…"

"Actually…" Henry narrowed his eyes with a wince. "I'd rather kind of… go to the bus stop by myself today."

Emma looked at him with an oddly furrowed brow. "But… why?"

"Because, you slept in, you look pretty beat. Lilly's sleeping mom, take the chance and get back to bed for a little while. You could use the sleep. Besides…" he looked at his mom's legs with a smirk. "You're still wearing your pajamas. If I wait for you to dress up, I'll miss my school bus."

She shook her head and rubbed her brow. "You're right. God. Ok, off you go." She reached out and hugged him, before kissing his head. "I love you! DON'T EAT JUNK FOOD!"

She managed to hear a scurried "I won't, love you too!" before the door was closed behind him, leaving Emma to the solitude of her apartment and the sounds of the streets below… and the noise of her own thoughts. She chuckled as she walked to her living room. "I'll bet there's a girl… Yep, there's gotta be a girl."

Emma took the time to sit and ponder about the man who had paid them a visit; the way he had looked at Lilly… and at her. The look of joy on his face, replaced by the sudden flush of apparent shock. It was almost as if he had been the unknowing father of her little girl, or something.

"Town-full of crazies…" she chuckled and stood, walking to the kitchen counter, where she picked up the little blue bottle and opened it to pour the contents into the sink.

But something stopped her dead in her tracks. She couldn't bring herself to do it.

_Trust your gut, Emma, it will tell you what to do_…

Emma looked at the bottle in her hands; one side of her wanted desperately to pour its contents away into the drain, but there was another part of her that screamed, begged her not to.

"Henry always says that…" she mumbled to herself as she tipped the bottle back up, turning around to look at it through the sunlight. There was but a single gulp of liquid in it. It could have been cyanide, or it could be one of those scopolamine tricks, where her attacker would return as soon as the drug took effect to have his way with her or rob her apartment or… take her daughter!

Still… no. None of those seemed right. There was something about the guy dressed as some sort of rowdy eighteenth century rebel that somehow inspired trust in her.

_Trust your gut_…

She walked to the door and locked it, bolted it rather, before checking on Lilly, who slept soundly. She then sat down on her couch and placed her phone by her side, together with her insurance card, to call 911 if it came to that. She then took the little blue bottle in her hands.

_Trust your gut_…

"I must be out of my friggin' mind…" she sighed and swallowed, before closing her eyes and taking the little bottle to her lips.

In a single gulp, she took down the bitter-sweet tasting liquid and not two seconds later, she sank into the couch, wide-eyed, as the memories flooded her mind once more: Storybrooke, Henry coming to find her, Regina's curse, her mother, Snow White and her father, prince Charming, Neverland, Peter Pan, Neal, Greg and Tamara, slaying a dragon, Mr. Gold, waking Henry from a curse, the Jolly Roger… Captain Hook.

CAPTAIN HOOK!

She could almost feel all over again the supple sensation of his skin grazing against hers, the rough, sandy scruff as he kissed her entire body, his soft smile, wet kisses, wanton and hungry and filled with love and a burning desire to own each other, the kind, blue eyes as he entered her, the sound of his heavy breathing in her ear and his voice as he shouted her name, both reaching a magnificent completion…

And then there was Lilly. Yep. Lilly was Killian's daughter.

Emma bolted upwards. "Oh my god… Hook…" She heaved as she took a hand to her lips. "KILLIAN!"

She checked on Lilly once more and then made a beeline for her coat, which she promptly tossed over her shoulders, grabbing her keys as she sprinted out the door, running around the streets, asking people if they had seen a terribly handsome guy, kind of dirty-looking, dressed in oddly old fashioned black leather.

She finally found him, standing by a bus stop, studying the bus route layout map.

Seeing him there, sneering as he tried to navigate the city in his mind, his eyes, as blue as she remembered them, studying the map before him in that way that only a true-blooded captain possibly could, made her heart skip a beat or two, and she was unable to contain a happy, teary-eyed grin.

It was plain to see he had no intention of leaving; he was hovering around the area, waiting for another shot.

As loyal as always.

She knew what he had felt, looking at Lilly… The exact same way she had felt the day Henry came knocking on her door. It amused her slightly to think that the two men that had given her offspring had found out about it later in life.

A smile finally crossed her face from ear to ear. She paced towards him, swiftly, her pajama bottom now murky at the base of her feet, as she called out his name. "KILLIAN!"

The man turned around, astounded to hear his name from her lips, especially when she hadn't remembered him less than an hour earlier.

It was like bloody music to his ears, actually.

He turned completely to her, smiling back, as she suddenly threw herself into his embrace. "You did it… you drank the potion…" He laughed into her hair. "Thank you, Swan…"

"You came back…"

"Did you miss me?"

"Didn't know how much I've missed you all till now…" she smiled, squeezing him hard. "You're really here…"

"Aye, I had to. It was important." He pulled away and looked at her as he held her by the shoulders, the smile on his face an undeniable sign of authentic joy. "Bloody hell, savior, I missed you…. Dreadfully."

She smiled back. "How… why? I mean…"

Killian sighed and dropped his arms by his side. "I'll explain everything love, over a plate of food. Haven't had any in three days… I hate to ask and impose, but…"

She sneered. "Why haven't you eaten?"

He chuckled and shrugged one shoulder. "There's not much to eat on the streets of New York, unless you are a rat…" He grinned shyly. "Not a lot of shelter or food when you're sleeping on park benches…"

Emma's eyebrows turned into an inverted V as she grabbed his arm. "Come on, let's get you something to eat… " She then wrinkled her nose. "Maybe a shower too… and maybe we can pop that shirt of yours into the washer while you eat…"

Killian chuckled and looked down to the floor sheepishly as he walked. "I know I'm not my most presentable right now, love. I am so sorry…"

"Don't." She shook her head. "I was about to kick you in the nuts up there, so… don't apologize."

"You drank it, though." He grinned. "Why did you? I know you Swan, you're the most distrusting lass in the whole bloody universe, why did you…?"

"Because of what you said." She cut in. "Trust your gut. Henry always tells me that. And also because…" she gulped hard. "Because of the way you looked at Lilly."

He nearly stopped breathing. "Lilly? Is that her name?"

Emma looked to the other side of the street to ensure they could cross without being hit by a car… or to not meet his inquisitive, heartfelt gaze. "Yep. Lilly. No funny middle names, no fancy trendy monikers. Just Lilly. Swan."

As soon as they reached the other side of the road, Killian spun her around gently and held his stare into her eyes, forcing her to look deep into his. "I know it's probably stupid of me to ask, but… is she my child, Emma?"

Emma pressed her lips hard, and grinned shyly. "I thought she belonged to the guy that I thought was dead and never even actually existed, but…" She shrugged. "She's three months old now, and the time you and I… that we…"

"Made love, Swan, you can say it."

"Yeah, that. The time we… made love…" she scratched her neck, still not comfortable with the wording and the whole veracity behind it. "It matches… it makes sense. You were the first guy in ages to touch me and the last one before the curse, so…" She sighed and looked at him. "Yeah, I guess there's no other explanation. It would appear that we had a kid together, Hook." She sneered in a helpless fashion.

He swallowed hard and looked to the floor. "Is she well?"

That brought the smile out in Emma. "She's perfectly fine. Ten toes, ten fingers, although…" She smirked. "She does have a real powerful left hook. Knocked Henry's eye last week."

Killian laughed as they resumed walking. "Well, I'm certainly not the only possible explanation for that, love. You knocked me out cold at lake Nostos, remember? You pack quite a wallop there too."

She nodded with a chuckle. They walked in silence before she spoke again. "She does look like you, too, come to think of it."

"Aye, that was my first thought. Devilishly beautiful…"

Emma huffed. "You're not too overwhelmed, are you?"

"Am I not? Swan!" He smiled. "Finally finding you was already bloody amazing, add to discovering I'm a father, all in the same day…"

"I know how you feel, actually… What is it with me and late parental disclosure, man?"

"Well, love, I must admit I'm completely dazed. Not in a bad way, though, actually…" He grinned as he followed her into the elevator. "It's rather a lovely feeling, thinking I have a… That I'm…"

Emma smiled. "You'll get used to the notion, trust me." She pressed the button and the doors closed. As they reached the apartment, she opened the door and immediately went to Lilly's bassinette. She hadn't even stirred.

Killian stepped into the apartment and held on to the wall; three days without a meal were starting to take a toll. He looked around and saw a fruit basket, made a beeline to it and grabbed an apple.

Emma stepped outside and closed the door behind her. "She's still asleep." She whispered, aghast at the way Killian was woofing down that apple. "Ok, hang on, don't you dare pass out on me. Let me… do you do eggs? Bacon?"

"Swan, I'll eat a whole bloody cow if you have it…" He replied with a mouthful.

She chuckled and started to stir some eggs into a bowl (Three of them. The man was definitely famished). She had noticed the embarrassed flush on his cheeks and was somewhat charmed by his incapability to restrain himself, something totally uncharacteristic of the well-mannered and contained Captain Hook she remembered.

Once he was done with his meal she handed him a bar of soap and led him to the shower, asking him to give his shirt to her. It would wash and dry quickly, being made of rather thin cotton.

While he bathed, Emma once again looked at her daughter and the memories of that night flooded her mind. It's not that she regretted having been with Killian; their little tryst had actually been quite lovely and the memory of it made Emma grin… but she really did think she'd never see him again.

She had no clue how to feel about the man now. But one thing was for sure: she was glad to see him again.

As it turned out, the outcome of their one-night encounter was a baby girl. Neither of them had really expected it. But he would lie to himself if he even tried to deny his delight. He still loved Emma with all he had in him and the thought that they had begotten a child together was enough to make his heart soar.

It's what he'd always wanted.

An hour later (a whole hour!), Killian emerged from the shower and paced through Emma's room, lured by the sound of the "Magic Box " in the living room. He wrapped a towel around his waist and dried off his hair with another towel Emma had given him. But the sight of the baby's bassinet under the dimmed lights stopped him dead in his tracks. Silently, he tiptoed around the bed and looked into the bassinette.

"Lilly…" He whispered, his still ring free hand reaching into the laced crib. He gently caressed the soft cheek and the little hand that was curled up beside it… and the babe sighed deep in her sleep… and grinned.

He caught his breath in his chest and inevitable tears welled in his eyes. He didn't even know they were there until the little girl stirred and pouted as she turned her head, and a tear finally made its way down his cheek as he smiled.

His entire life changed in that precise fraction of a second.

"Cor, bleedin' hell…." He whispered, biting his lower lip.

"Yeah, it does something to ya, doesn't it?" Came Emma's voice, spoken softly as she leaned on the doorframe.

"Aye… that it does." Killian turned to her and smiled fully, before turning back to his daughter. His _DAUGHTER_. He continued to caress the face, the head, the little hands, the soft, black hair. "She's bloody marvelous, Swan. I've no words…" He swallowed. "She's lovely, look at her, who would have thought…"

"Come on, where's the "devilishly handsome" pride of yours?" she grinned.

"Still…"

"Come on." She beckoned him to the living room. "We need to talk. Dress up."

He turned a cheeky grin to her. "You sure you'd not rather have me prancing around the way I am now, Swan?" He tilted his head to the baby and returned to Emma with a flirty grin. "We do make a good team, just look at that babe, couldn't be prettier if we had actually tried."

"There you are. I was starting to wonder who you were and what you had done with Captain Innuendo…"

He smiled. "You said that to me… last year."

"Well… we need to catch up." Her tone became serious. "Why are you really here, Killian?"

He sighed, looking at the baby once more, before turning, full bodied and clad in merely a towel to Emma.

She had a hard time swallowing at the sight.

Stupid idiot; Stupid, hot, adorable idiot.

"You have a drink, love?"

"Erhm… yeah." She finally managed to look into his eyes. "You, erhm… want your pants and jacket? I mean, before you… And I have your vest outside, but the shirt is still, erhm…"

"It's fine, love, the leathers will do."

"Should I… step outside, while you…?"

He narrowed his eyes with a smile. "Not like you haven't seen me nude before, love, why the sudden coyness?"

Emma huffed and rolled her eyes before walking out and coming back indoors carrying the heavy leather outfit. "Dress up, Hook."

And out she went.

oooooooooooooo

Killian was pleased to see she left slightly flushed, and the smile on his face remained as he stuck his legs into his pants. He reached into his pocket for the thick lump of kohl paste in a tiny satchel, decorated his eyes and re-jeweled his ear and fingers.

Just before putting on his rings, he took one final look at the little baby girl still asleep in her little oval laced crib, and after taking his fingers to his lips to kiss the tips, he took the hand back to her head with a grin. "My wee lass…" he smiled, sighed, and turned around to join Emma at the table.

Emma looked stern as she placed two tumblers on the table, together with a Captain Morgan bottle of Rum.

She sat on one side as Killian took the opposite side, looking at her with a very besotted grin. "I know I said it before, Swan, but…" He huffed as he leaned back on the chair. "I can't stress enough how bloody wonderful you are. She's amazing. You've done beautifully." He grinned and swallowed. "I swear that if I had known I'd left you with child, I'd have found a way to come back sooner…"

She shrugged. "You had no way of knowing. As far as I knew up until this afternoon, her father was killed in a fire; I suppose it's kind of a relief that no one actually died." She frowned. "Do you think Regina knew that I was…?"

"No, I don't know how anyone could have foreseen this…" He shrugged. "If anyone had had an inkling about what happened between us, Swan, your father would have taken my liver as soon as we reached the Enchanted Forest."

"Then the spell sort of… fit itself into my life?" She frowned. "Really?"

Killian shook his head and shrugged. "I know not, love, I am not too savvy in matters of sorcery."

Emma leaned her face on one hand and chuckled with a grin. "Mary Margaret and David are going to have a stroke…"

From the looks of it, Killian was about to have one too as soon as she mentioned their names. "Well, now that you mention it," he scratched the back of his ear. "…your blessed father might want to cut off my one good hand…"

Emma side-grinned. "The hand would be the least of my worries…"

Killian shook his head. "Bloody hell, what will we say?"

"Come on Hook, we're adults, it's not like we're two high-schoolers eloping, or something!" Emma laughed as she bit her lower lip. "David will quite likely shout something in your face and…"

"Punch it soundly too. Aye, he'll slug me one, mark my words." Killian rubbed his jaw in anticipation. "I'll have a black eye before the morrow."

"It's ok, I'll soften the blow." She nodded. "Just… try not to punch back?"

"Why would I? I impregnated his daughter before disappearing for a whole bloody year. I'd punch me for it if I were your dad."

"Come on, had you known…"

He nodded back. "Aye. Had I known…"

Emma looked away from him. "So… what brings you back here, Hook?"

Killian went into detail regarding the message he received from a bird, the new curse that had prompted him to return to her and the story of how he left the enchanted forest in lack of her presence.

And of course, how imperative it was for her to return to Storybrooke.

Emma sighed deep. "You know who I was yesterday?" she grinned sadly. "A mother. Just that. Then you came poking holes into everything I thought was real. Drinking that potion was like waking up from a dream." She stressed. "A really good dream."

Killian nodded sadly. "Well you have what matters most… your children."

"I gotta figure out how to explain all this to Henry."

Just then they were interrupted by a loud shrieking holler.

Emma sighed and bit her lower lip. "Someone's up." She grinned as she stood up and walked around the table. "Wait here, she might need a change."

"Wait love!" He stood eagerly behind her. "I'll help out."

Emma chuckled. "You? You want to help me clean up baby poop?"

Hook shrugged and pouted, before dropping his arms on either side with a happy grin. "How hard can it be, Swan?"

"Are you kidding?" Emma smiled. "It's hard enough with two hands, let alone with one. Besides, this is nothing like swabbing the deck of your ship, buddy, you don't stand a chance…"

Hook shrugged sheepishly and shook his head, raising his eyebrows. "I'm good with the one hand, Swan, you know that. I can always learn. I always do."

Emma narrowed her eyes and pressed his lips together. "Wow, you're really want into this whole thing, don't you?"

His stare went dead serious. "Emma…" He licked his lips and looked to the floor. "I've come all the way back here to save you. And like I told you, never, for one day, did I stop thinking about you. And then when I finally do find you, I find out that we begot a child together? I'm sorry…" He chuckled with a grin that was far more adorable than flirty. "I know this must have been a hell of a year for you, having this baby by yourself, but I can't help feeling incredibly elated. And yes, I do want to be a part of it… no, I AM a part of it. You can't blame a man for wanting to be with his family now, can you?"

Family?

She blinked twice rapidly and her mouth fell open, as if she were about to retort, but simply continued to blink mutely. Although she wasn't sure she wanted to upgrade their "once upon a night couple" status to "family", she truly didn't have the heart to deny him his involvement with his own daughter, especially after she had seen his reaction. He may have been a pirate and maybe he was a little bit rough around the edges, but she remembered that last night like it had been merely a day; in spite of his ached, troubled past and the long line of dreadful mistakes he had made, the pirate's heart was very much in the right place, she knew that much. And the pleading look in his eyes… no, she couldn't.

_Damn you, Jones, damn you damn you damn you!,_ she thought as she grinned swiftly, walls up, disguising her very own ground shattering turmoil over his words, and nodded. "Ok, come on. Good luck. Breathe through your mouth if you have to."

Killian followed Emma into the room and stared, his lips agape, as Emma drew the weeping little girl out of her little crib. "Ooohhh, there, there… shhh." She smiled as she held her to her chest. "It's ok…" She raised her eyes to Killian who just stared in absolute awe. "Hook, in that third drawer to the left… a towel, please… spread it on the bed."

He swiftly turned and followed her instructions and Emma laid the soft little bundle down. "Ok, now let's see how you're doing…"

As she undid the little pink overall, Killian looked over Emma's shoulder with utter fascination. "So, let's give the Captain his official welcome call into fatherhood, shall wee, Lillz?"

Killian's heart soared.

As soon as the diaper came off, the Pirate spun back with a cough. "Bloody hell…"

Emma huffed and grinned. "Oooh, look at the captain, Lilly! He can literally fight off ten pirates singlehandedly, but he can't handle a little bit of baby poop…"

He turned back with a sneer. "Ten pirates together couldn't conjure something as foul-smelling as that, Swan…"

Emma laughed. "So you say... Perhaps you so used to the pirate pong that you can't smell it on others any more…." She turned back to her daughter, talking sweetly. "Your father thinks his poop don't stink…"

Killian huffed and rolled his eyes. "Breathing through my mouth now, Emma, what do I do?"

"Ok, get the little blue bag under the sink in the bathroom, please…"

They spent the following then minutes cleaning up the little girl with Hook making snarky comments regarding the uncanny possibility that something as adorable as Lilly could actually produce that horrid matter. And as promised, he lent a single hand in literally cleaning poop from his daughter's tiny pink bum.

Even the baby seemed amused as she held on to her own little feet.

Once Emma was done (and the windows were wide-open for much needed ventilation), she turned to the pirate that stood, his gaze transfixed on his little baby girl.

Her heart swelled.

"You… want to hold her? I have to make a couple of calls and …"

"Oh, no, no, no, Swan…" he took two steps back and shook his one hand. "I'll break her or drop her or…"

"What?"

"What if villainy is contagious?" He sneered. "My brother told me tales of an old witch that would turn you into the foulest soul merely by her touch, how do I know…?"

"God, are you REALLY being this ridiculous?" Emma sneered. "She's your daughter, now you want a part in this fairy tale? You learn how to hold the kid, NOW!"

Killian swallowed. "If the lady insists…" He stepped forward again and allowed Emma to place the now happy little babe in his arms, using the handless one to cradle Lilly.

There was no letting go from that point on. Emma did her packing, her cooking, her cleaning, her moving around without his help… he was far too entranced holding the baby, talking to her, walking around, his eyes not leaving her for a split second. At one point, Lilly smiled and cackled and he immediately laughed back, utterly delighted.

Emma looked at him; This was the dread Captain Hook? Was this the same guy who had viciously stabbed Gold with the hook on his hand not too far from where they were now? Same guy who had punched and shot Belle? Talk about change… She had never in her mind imagined she'd ever see… Ugh. She shook the thought and looked at him. "Listen I… I hate to break up the happy reunion, but…" She placed a strand of hair behind her ear. "Henry will be home soon and… well it would be awkward to…"

"Agreed, love." He nodded, finally looking at her. He handed the little girl to Emma. "Here you go. "He whispered, smiling. As Emma held her daughter, Hook leaned down and kissed the little head before standing at the same level as her eyes. "I'm madly in love with you…" He whispered, before touching the little black hair of head. He then rose his eyes to Emma and held her stare. He didn't need to say a word. She knew that those words were not meant for Lilly alone.

"I'll be over at eight sharp, Swan." He grinned and nodded.

Emma nodded back with an awkward grin as he turned around and headed for the door. "Wait!"

He turned to her, brow risen, and happier than she'd ever seen him before. "Aye?"

"I mean… where will you… spend the night?"

Killian shrugged. "New York may have little to offer meal-wise, but it sure does have a lot of street lodging options." He grinned confidently. "There's a lovely bench just outside the…"

"NO, not on your life!"

"Emma, come on, love. I've slept in the open air more times than I could ever account for."

She shook her head. "Yeah, well, I happen to have a… guest room. You can crash there."

"Crash?" He cocked his head back, confused.

"Sleep."

"But the lad…"

"Tell you what." She approached his face. "You get in there, be really quiet and go to sleep and Henry will never notice; I'll wake you up before he does and then you can sort of… pretend you've come to pick us up." She sighed and shook her head. "You've been through enough, it's the least I can do."

Killian stared at her and sighed, caving in with a nod. "If the lady insists…"

"I do insist. Come on…" She led him to the small room, set up with a rather comfy looking couch and Henry's bicycle. "I'll get you a blanket and a pillow."

She turned and Killian grabbed her by the arm. "Swan?"

"Yeah?"

He swallowed hard and grinned. "Thank you. For this, for believing me and…" he nodded his head iat Lilly with a side-grinned. "…for the babe. She's a delight, Emma. I only wish I'd been here for you."

Emma grinned adoringly back. That puppy-hearted villainous captain of hers… Wait, of "hers"? Had she really thought it? Whatever.

"Look, I'll get you a photo album. There's loads of photographs of Lilly from even before she was born. Maybe it's not the same but…"

"It would be grand, lass."

That smile was a good seller.

She then walked out and returned with a sheet, a blanket and a pillow… and a mint colored little book.

After helping him set up his impromptu bed, Emma closed the door behind her for the night, with no more than a swift grin and an almost imperceptible "nite". Killian swiftly undressed and got under the blanket, to peer through the book.

"Very well, let's take a look at this wee lass…" He grinned as he opened the booklet, taking in every little line, image, scrap and cut attached to it with utter and unbridled delight.

Oooooooooooooo

Emma Swan wept steadily the first night in New York.

She had memories of Eddie Jamison, a handsome, roguish guy who was to marry her after he had found out she was expecting their child.

The fire had started when she and Henry had gone to the theater to see a play Henry needed to review for History class. It had been quite the shock to return and find that their place was on fire.

Now, as Killian Jones lay in a room a few meters away, she wondered how on earth she could have mustered up such horrible emotions… the feeling of loss, for a guy that didn't even exist.

As a matter of fact, what the hell did he look like? She didn't even have a photo of Eddie!

"Damn magical nonsense…" She sighed as she rubbed her forehead, getting into bed.

She heard Henry let himself in with his keys and sighed with a grin, silently thanking god for letting her son come back home safe and sound. The boy peeked through her open door and she smiled at him from the bed. "Hey Kid. Had a good time with Mallory and her dad?"

"Yep." He grinned and nodded.

Emma gave him a little wiseass smirk. "So? True love?"

Henry huffed. "Mom… I'm twelve."

She giggled. "Just checking. Come on, kiss me goodnight and get to bed. Quickly."

"Ok…" He nodded as he walked to her.

"Oh, by the way!" She said as she sat up on her bed to get her goodnight kiss from her boy. "No school tomorrow. We're going on a trip."

Henry frowned and after kissing her cheek, he stood straight. "Like a vacation?"

"No… I have a case in Maine, and an old friend of mine will be by early to pick us up. It might take while, so… you're coming with me."

"No school… a trip with you… SOLD!" he grinned as he turned around and made or the door. "Night, mom!"

"Night, Henry!"

She sighed when she heard him close the door to his room, and then continued her musings.

And was kind of shocked to finally come to an understanding of why she wept so badly for the late non existent Eddie.

In her memories, he had the face of Killian Jones. So probably, her own mind, influenced by pan's curse, had chosen to kill him off and give her a sense of closure.

She huffed and shook her head as she sank into her bed, turning to switch of the light. "Sigmund Freud would have a field day with me right now…" She mumbled as she closed her eyes… and grinned, pleased to know that the man in question was very much alive, healthy… and a few feet away from her.

That much was comforting.

oooooooooooooooooo

MY BABY ALBUM

LILLY SWAN

ABOUT ME

**My name is** Lilly Swan, **I was named after** my brother Henry's favorite flower, **my hair color is **very dark brown, almost black **and my eyes are** the bluest eyes you could ask for. Lucky me!** I weighed **4.3 kilograms **and I measured** 52 centimeters.

MY FAMILY

**My mom's name is** Emma **and my dad's name is** Eddie (RIP).

**My sibling(s) is (are)** Henry.

**My grandparents are** _** and** _.

"Oh Swan…" Killian pressed his lips together, feeling how her ache as an orphan must have resurfaced while filling that part.

THE DAY I WAS BORN! YAY, I MADE IT!

**I was born on** March 27, 2014, **at **St. Vincent's Hospital. **The time was** three o' clock in the morning, I'm just as intense as my mother! **and everyone thought I looked like** my dad, because I look almost nothing like my mom, except for the funny hole on my chin. **Other interesting details about my birth** **are** that I didn't cry at first because my chord was around my neck, and my mommy was scared to death because she couldn't hear me, she was scared that I hadn't made it and that I had gone to join my daddy but hey! I was here, I'm just rather pensive and when she saw that I was ok, mommy was very, very relieved and happy to meet me. So was my big handsome brother Henry who cried a lot when he first held me.

"That makes two of us, m'boy…" He spoke under his breath.

After reading up about all the details about his daughter's first days, her first cry, her first toy, her first smile… he went on to the photographs. The first one was a photo of Emma.

"Gods in the sea, what a woman this is…" he muttered with a smile.

She sat on one of the benches in Central Park (Hook knew them by now) and smiled at the camera, wearing a long, flowing floral dress in whites and reds, her sunlit golden locks flowing down in soft curls and her arms spread out on the back of the bench…. And hugely, beautifully pregnant.

He didn't know whether to laugh or cry, but the tug in his heart was a clear indication of regret; regret to have missed this. His first child, and he hadn't been there for her, to see her come into the world, to share the hard and heavy burden with Emma… And the joy.

"Life mocks me, I swear it." He bit his lip as he looked at another photo. Emma, in her underwear before a mirror, also super pregnant, smiling; Emma and Henry amidst a bunch of baby goods after her baby shower; Henry dressed in a rather odd hospital scrub, … and finally, Lilly, probably minutes old.

A gasp and a huge smile surfaced on his face. "Oh, darling little girl, look at you, so bloody…. Perfect! Gods…" He bit his lip to prevent himself from laughing out loud – Henry was coming in and he heard the boy pace through the hall and into his room. Once the boy had closed the door behind him, Hook sighed deep and again got a grip. The next photo was of Emma, Henry and Lilly, all lying on the hospital bed. It was plain to see Emma had just delivered the girl: she looked exhausted, sweaty and flushed… but even more beautiful than he'd ever imagined. "Brave lad, Henry. Good form." He smiled, glad to know that at least she hadn't been alone while having Lilly. "And you… you bloody brilliant, brave, amazing, beautiful woman, Swan."

If he had loved her before….


	4. Being Eddie and leaving New York

Her contractions started somewhere around six in the afternoon. Henry was sitting by the table, doing his homework, when he heard a loud crash in the other room and his mother gasp his name, "Henry!"

So many times he had been the man of the house already….

The boy rushed and found his mom on the floor of her bedroom, lying in a puddle of what looked like… gooey water. "Mom!" he shouted and ran to her. "Mom!"

Emma looked up into his eyes and grinned from the floor. "It's your sister… she's coming!"

"Oh, god, you don't… I can't…"

"Oh cut it out…" she chuckled and held her hand out for him to pull her back to her feet. "I don't want you to be my midwife, just call the number over the phone by the keys!"

"Oh!" Henry smiled, relieved. "Ok. The ambulance?"

"Yeah… and please grab my bag! It's under the coat rack by the door." She huffed as he steadied her and sat her on the bed.

"Ok! No problem! Operation Duckling begins!"

"Sure does, kid…" She started to pant mildly, grinning to hide the pain that had started to swell within her tummy… and her heart.

Henry ran out to make the call.

She thought of Eddie. She thought of how much he would have loved to be a part of all this… and how she and henry returned to find him dead on a stretcher, after inhaling vast amounts of smoke from the fire in Boston.

A tear trickled down her face and she no longer new if it was from the pain that was starting to spread physically or from the sadness of her loss.

She had managed to soldier on…. But Henry had lost his only father figure and she had lost the one man who had offered her love, roof, loyalty and a family. She saw dark hair and blue eyes in her mind through the haze of the contractions that seemed to intensify with every passing minute. How she wished for him to be helping her stand, walking to the bug and driving her himself to welcome their little one.

But no. He was gone. She had said goodbye a year earlier.

An hour later, she and Henry were at St. Vincent's. The boy practically begged to be there, but being underage, he was not allowed, so he just waited outside in the hall, where one of Emma's work friends, Jessica, showed up to lend a hand. "Henry!" She called. The boy leapt from his chair and hugged the woman.

"She's in there, they won't let me in!" He whined.

"Oh, believe me, darlin' you DON'T wanna see your mother push a baby out her hoo-hah…" Jessica shrugged with a chuckle. "You'll need therapy for ten years. I'm a girl and even I'm not too sure if I'll want to breed after today!"

"The thing is…" Henry sighed. "She's still kind of… sad."

"Oh…" Jessica sat down and pulled him to sit beside hr. "Because of your dad?"

Henry shook his head. "He wasn't… my dad. Not exactly. But he really wanted to be. And my mom loved him, and they were happy." He shrugged. "I really hate that my mom's had such a tough deal in life. I sometimes think even I'm not enough for her to be completely happy…"

"Ok, now, you don't get to say that at all, ok?" She held both hands up, showing perfectly manicured red nails. "You are a great kid and your mom adores you."

"I know that… but she's missing something." He shrugged. "She's missing him."

Jessica sighed. "Of course she does. But today's a happy day, sweetie, you'll be going home with a new little sister!"

Henry grinned. "Yeah… that's the coolest thing!"

"So, what are you going to call her, do you know?"

Henry shrugged. "My mom insisted on Neve. It means snow… in latin." He wrinkled his nose.

Jessica chuckled. "Not a fan of that name, are ya?"

"No." He shook his head vehemently. "I like Lilly."

"Lilly, huh…"

"Yep. I think Eddie would have liked that. It's a nice flower, it's simple, it's sweet… it's very girlie."

"Y'know what, kid?" Jessica smiled in her thick, Brooklyn accent. "I actually agree with you. Lilly is a great name." She stood up and sighed. "Listen, I gotta go in there, to the battle field. You stay here, ok?"

Henry huffed. "Sure. Where the heck would I go?" He shrugged and sat back, pulling a comic book from his backpack.

Jessica frowned; the comic book looked like… a fairy tale comic book.

She shook her head and walked to the lounge desk. "Strange little boy…"

oooooooooo

It was almost three and the little one was finally ready to come out. Emma had been in heavy-duty labor now since one pm and felt terribly drained, achy and terrified. Henry had been an easy delivery in comparison. She was in for delivery and out after two hours. But this little one was proving to be a little bit more of a princess.

Now she lay on the bed of her little room, pushing a new life out of her.

"Come on Emma, you need to give me one hard push, the baby's already crowned, if we get the head out we should be ok after that."

Emma moaned through gritted teeth, sweaty and flushed and feeling like this would be the death of her.

"Come on, honey!" Jessica held her hand. "Just give it one hard, solid push, you heard the doctor…"

"Ok, ready?" the doctor smiled. "Here we go… One, two… PUSH!"

Emma roared and decidedly continued pushing even after the doctor told her to stop; she was going to get that damn baby head out of her if it killed her trying.

"Ok, Emma, take a break, breathe, and…"

"HELL, NO, YOU GET THIS BABY THE HELL OUT OF ME RIGHT NOW!" She growled back at the doctor.

The man laughed out. "We're working on it, Emma, but you can't strain yourself like this or you might tear and…"

The monitor of the baby's heart suddenly sped up. The doctor turned his head and shook his head. "Dammit…"

"What? What is it?" Emma asked.

"Ok, Emma, listen to me, the baby is in distress, her heart just accelerated, so we need to get her out, ok? You can do this."

Panicked, Emma squeezed her friend's hand (and chipped her perfectly red manicure) and nodded. "Ok! Ok…!"

"So, come on… ready? One… two… three… aaaand PUSH! Push Emma, push!"

She pushed and pushed and pushed, and felt herself tearing.

"Doctor!" A nurse exclaimed.

"Yeah I saw that, we'll tend to that in a minute. PUSH EMMA!"

And she pushed again.

And the head was out.

"Emma, please, just keep pushing, we need to get her out!"

Jessica shook her head at the doctor. "Are you insane?"

The doctor looked up at the mother and her friend. "Listen, Emma, the baby has her chord around her neck…"

"What? NO!" Emma turned white, all the flushed redness disappearing in less than a second.

"We're almost done, just keep pushing so we can get her out, now!"

"Okay, honey…" Jessica turned and caressed Emma's hair out of her face. "Just do as the doctor says, and Lilly will be out of you in no time and she'll be fine and…"

"Lilly?" she turned to her friend, sneering.

"Yeah!" Jessica smiled. "Lilly. Now focus!"

"Okay… okay!" Emma panted. "OKAY!"

"Ready? Here we go, let's get this baby out!" The doctor smiled. "One… two… three… PUSH!"

Emma didn't recall how long she pushed for before she felt her daughter's entire body leave her own. The doctor and the nurses frantically muddled around the child, and a haze of activity trying to get her to breathe made Emma's heart nearly pound it's way out her chest.

"Lilly?" LILLY!" she shouted from her bed, almost attempting to get up and run to where they had taken her child, to the other side of the room, in a frantic effort to save her. She felt tears sting her eyes. "No… no, no, no, please NO!"

"She'll be fine…" Jessica squeezed her hand. "Just stay calm, Em, she's gonna be ok…."

For another minute, the doctor did everything in his power to make the little girl come around… until a loud squeal pierced the very foundation of Emma's heart.

She lived.

Emma, still breathing hard and sweating even more than before, leaned back on her head rest, her eyes fixed in the general direction of where the doctor helped stimulate her child.

After a few minutes, he finally turned to Emma with a smile. He held the little baby girl, now wrapped in a pink blanket and a little pink beanie, and walked to her. "She's fine, she's perfectly ok now. All toes, all fingers, no health issues." He placed the little one on her chest. "You are a trooper, Emma. Here's your baby girl. Congratulations."

Emma trembled; she remembered holding Henry for the first time and how amazing it was to see his little face for the first time; holding the tiny girl in her arms, looking so weak, so fragile… and after being so close to fading away and joining Eddie, she was more than just thrilled. Smiling and crying at the same time, she looked at the baby, and was thrilled to see a very full head of black hair atop two very prominent dark eyebrows.

She was going to have Eddie's looks, and Emma couldn't have been happier.

"Hi there! Lilly!" She smiled as she kissed the little head. "Oh, my god…"

Jessica leaned in and kissed Emma's head. "There, you see? She's gorgeous girl! Look at her!"

"She looks just like her daddy…" Emma wept through happy-slash-sad tears. "Yeah, you do, don't you?"

After the baby was finally cleaned up and Emma was holding her, nurse came in soon after, with Henry dressed in scrubs. Emma smiled at her boy. "Hey kid…"

"Mom, are you ok?" Henry frowned.

"She's fine." The nurse smiled at him. "She's just really tired, but she and your sister have a perfect bill of health."

"Come on over, kid!" Jessica called over. "Meet your sister, Lilly!"

Henry's eyes glowed. "Lilly? You're calling her Lilly?"

Emma just shrugged in defeat. "I guess we could all cope with that."

Henry walked over and held his arms out as Emma handed him the tiny little girl. As soon as she was in his arms, Henry felt involuntary tears sting his eyes, and Emma beamed. "Happy, kiddo?"

Henry nodded and grinned as a tear fell from his eye directly on the baby's cheek. "Yeah, She's awesome!"

He then handed the baby back to his mom and Jessica took a photo of the three of them. "For the baby album", she had said.

oooooooooooooooooo

Emma tapped on Killian's door softly. It was seven in the morning. "Killian?" She mumbled. "Come on, get up, Henry's about to wake…"

He opened the door and she was pleasantly surprised that he was cleaned up, dressed and ready. "Wow… you're an early bird."

The captain smiled back at her. "Sea captain, love. Even with the worst of hangovers, I'm the first to rise and the last to sleep. Part of the job."

She nodded.

An awkward yet eerily comfortable silence fell between them, and she looked into his eyes. "You know… it's strange how curses work." She shook her head. "I was so sure Eddie had died and…"

"Eddie?" Hook frowned, confused.

"Hmm, you know…" Emma shook her head, dismissively. "The guy I … thought was Lilly's dad."

"Oh."

"Anyway, I was sure he had passed away, the most horrible death you can imagine…" she shook her head and swallowed. "But it's strange. I never questioned it. Never doubted for a second that those memories were real, and yet…" she looked up into his eyes. "I never had as much as a photograph of him. Or a video…. Or of Henry growing up, either." She chuckled and shook her head. "I knew something was off, all along, but I never questioned it." She looked up into Hook's eyes. "I was about to marry a guy that never existed. I supposedly had his baby, Killian, and not for a second did I ever wonder about why I never had as much as a photograph."

Killian simply stared silently, knowing she was probably just trying to be listened.

"It's just as well…" she grinned, looking at her hands. "I only remember his face. I guess that the curse does work according to your situation and your thoughts." She grinned. "I became pregnant that very last night. So… the curse gave me a fitting memory to explain it. Killing off the baby's father was a way to explain why the heck I wound up pregnant with no guy in sight."

Killian nodded. "I agree…"

She sighed and raised a grin to him. "At least I know the real father's not dead."

He side grinned and cocked his head to a side, taking a step closer to her. "Glad to have me around then, Swan?" He flirted, soft-spoken.

Emma rolled her eyes, but still smiled. "No matter what, Hook, I wouldn't wish you dead."

The ban bit his lower lip. "Well, that's a start."

Another comfortable silence. "So, tell me, Savior…" He spoke quietly. "Was your 'Eddie' nearly as striking as I?"

Emma swallowed. "Wouldn't you like to know…"

"I do." He shot back, completely serious.

The girl grinned. "Holy crap… you're jealous of the guy that doesn't exist?"

"No. I am jealous of your fabrication of him." He replied softly. "Much as it makes sense, I…" He swallowed. "I spent a whole year, Emma, dreaming of the day I'd see you again and while I know this wasn't your doing I can't help but feel that I…"

She put a hand on his lips. "Stop ranting, pirate, he isn't even real… Or actually…" She shrugged. "He kind of… is. Was. Whatever."

He swallowed a very audible gulp and Emma hated to admit that his little hissy fit of jealousy gave her a small thrill.

"If you must know… he was every bit as 'striking as you are'." She sighed and looked into his eyes. "He was you."

Killian frowned. "C… come again?"

"Yep. He was you. Some weird, parallel, American-accented, baseball-playing version of you." She tilted her head sideways. "Do you really think you were the only one crushed by that stupid curse? Do you really believe you were the only one who felt heartbroken?" she pressed her lips together. "We may not be my parents, Hook, but that night wasn't entirely devoid of meaning for me, ok? I was the one to look for you, remember? I wanted it, I asked for it! The curse gave me a memory of a man with YOUR stupid face, for god's sake, and then killed you off, so believe it or not, I am actually glad he's not real, because then you'd be dead, and as much as we've bickered and argued over the past, I don't want you to die! I mean, you did still come back for me and you did father a child with me and you d…"

Kiss. Yeah, that was him, kissing her again. Sudden and harsh, A 'shut up, you're rambling', kiss.

And it worked. When he pulled away, she took a few seconds to open her eyes again, to meet his somewhat annoyed yet deeply satisfied grin.

"Learn when to be quiet, Swan…" He joked, touching her cheek with his index. "You really didn't need to be so jocular about it. A simple yes or no would have sufficed." He pushed past her and grinned ruefully, knowing she was now standing stunned, much like he had in Neverland.

Romance, it seemed, was a game of cat and mouse. And for now, he felt like he had the upper hand.

He walked past the door of her room and peeked in, grinning at the little bassinet, before continuing to the door. Seconds later, he heard Emma shuffling silently behind.

"What will you do, from now till eight?"

He turned to her with a grin. "Tis the city that never sleeps, said some strange banner…" He shrugged. "I'm sure I can kill an hour sitting on a bench with a few warm gulps of rum."

Emma heaved with a grin. "You'll get arrested."

The pirate's eyebrow went way up before he sighed hard. "Well, then I'll just sit and wait."

"Sounds like a fun plan."

"Waiting for you? Always." Again, she was silent. He nodded his head and opened the door. "See you in a while, Swan."

As he closed the door behind him, Emma turned and huffed softly, touching her lower lip. "Idiot…" She whispered, an impish grin suddenly curving her lips upwards.

She was drawn back to reality by the sound of Lilly crying.

When she reached her room, she found Henry, disheveled, still clad in his pajama, pulling his sister out of her crib.

"Oh, I was just going to wake you…"

"Done." He replied softly. "Was there someone at the door?"

"Yeah, Mr. Cribbins, from downstairs."

"The usual?"

"Yeah, same complaints about the piping making noises."

He handed the baby to his mom and Emma greeted her with a "Hi you!". She then turned to Henry. "Ok, let me bathe her and myself and I'll get started on breakfast, kid."

Henry nodded and went to his room, also ready for a nice, hot shower and a trip with his mom.

Killian sat on the bench across the street, fighting the urge to drink from his flask with everything he had. He looked around him; this wasn't a bad realm, in fact, the city looked promising… if he had been there as a much younger, adventurous pirate, that is. Still, as a flock of pigeons flew over his head, he smiled, looking straight at the building where Emma, Henry and his little bairn resided. For the first time in his entire life, he felt truly blessed and lucky. That kiss could have gone far worse. Her reation to it was by no means what he still dreamt of, but not getting shoved away was a good standing point.

He'd already won her heart once… he'd do it again. And he was already on the right track.

An hour flew by and he was once again climbing up to the third floor, and taping on door 311. He heard shuffling and found Emma opening the door again with a grin. "Hi…"

"You ready, Swan?" He smiled as he let himself in, his eyes looking around the apartment.

He was stunned to see Henry… and glad. The boy had grown at least an inch and was starting to resemble a little man, not so much the wee boy he had helped save from Neverland.

Henry, however, was deeply impacted by Killian's rugged, 18th century appearance… and the fact that he looked so much like Eddie.

"Henry, this is Killian…" Emma grinned. "He's a… he's, I'm… helping him… with his case."

Henry eyed him from head to toes. "Did you skip bail?"

"Why, he's still a little spitfire!" Killian smiled at Emma.

"Still?" henry looked at Emma confused.

"No honey, he's not a perp, he's a client." Emma smiled at her son.

The boy still let his eyes travel from Killian's fuzzy hair to his funny winkle picker boots on his feet. "But… why are you dressed like that?"

"And why are YOU dressed like THAT?" Killian responded in annoyance.

Men could be children, that much was for sure, Emma thought as she stood between the two. "All right, all right, Killian, make yourself useful and help with the bags, Henry, you lend him a hand…".

Emma went back into the apartment as the pirate and her son pulled the bags out. When she emerged, Killian beamed with pride: She held the little girl in one arm, fully awake, and a small carry on in the other… and wore her trademark red jacket.

"So, I was starting to wonder where Emma Swan might have gone to!" He smiled and then touched the baby's cheek with a grin.

Emma grinned at him and turned to Henry. "Come on, kid, we gotta get these to the bug. Let's go."

"What's the name of the place we're going to, again?" Henry shrugged.

"Oh… Storybrooke."

"In Maine?"

"Yep."

He turned and looked at them. "Is that a real town?"

Killian nodded. "Aye lad, that it is, and we'd better get a move on, if we want to make it in good time. We've a lot of work to do."

Henry shrugged and kept on walking ahead of them. Emma turned and mouthed a silent 'thank you'.

So after adjusting little Lilly to the baby seat and placing all the luggage in the front compartment, they boarded and left back for the enchanted town… unknown still to all of them that it would be their last day in New York.


	5. Q&A before lunchtime

"Are you really a friend of my mom's?"

The sudden brashness of the boy and his open-spirited attitude as he asked made Killian grin. "Aye, you could say that." He nodded as he hoped and prayed Emma would come back from her gas station pee break soon.

"How long ago?"

"Oh, we sort of go… way back." He nodded.

"Before I was born?"

"No, I wouldn't say that…"

Henry leaned forward between the seats. "You know… you really, really look like my the guy my mom was dating. Lilly's dad, Eddie."

"Wh… what?" Killian finally turned fully to the boy, eyes like dinner plates.

"Yeah, except he always wore a Red Sox Jersey and spoke with an American accent." He sighed and looked down. "He died about a year ago."

"Aye, I know of it."

"But really, you look like him a lot. Like his stunt double."

"I…"

"Only dressed funny…"

"Listen boy…" Killan rolled his eyes.

"So, what are you…. Like, his cousin?"

"Well, lad, I…" He was starting to scratch the back of his ear, when Emma finally returned.

Killian had faced many dangerous questionings, and this had been by far the worst.

"Ok, sure no one else wants to make use of the pit stop?"

Henry looked at his mother. "M&M's and a Root Beer?"

Emma looked at him through the rear view and huffed as she produced a twenty dollar bill. "Fine. Get me some pretzels and a coke. Killian? Want anything?"

"A bottle of rum?"

Emma gave Killian a swift punch and Henry smiled and cackled. "No wonder you're my mom's friend, Killian, that was pretty awesome…" He turned and after pushing out the seat and running to the store, Killian turned two massive, quizzical eyes to Emma. "What did I say?"

"The kid is twelve!" Emma stared daggers at him. "Be grateful he thought you were kidding!"

The pirate shook his head and grinned. "You're still making an awfully big deal out of a man's petty erring, are you, Swan?"

She huffed. "Whatever. Just don't use the hook or show the flask around my kids, please."

He pouted and nodded sideways. "As the lady wishes…"

She laughed a rather sarcastic laugh. "You really haven't changed much, have you?"

Killian chose not to answer that question…. But he felt it, like a slap around the face.

She immediately noticed the change in his attitude and sighed. "Ok, look, I now this is all new and exciting for you, Hook and I totally get that, but my son still has no idea who you are and until we find a way to make him remember, I'd rather not give him reason to conjure up ideas that might affect him, ok?" She touched his shoulder. "I'm sure you understand that."

He nodded. "Aye. In that case, you might want to come up with an explanation as to why I look so much like his little sister's late father…"

Emma turned to him swiftly. "Oh, god, he's noticed?"

He shrugged. "Told you, Swan, he's rather sharp… and brazen."

Emma huffed and closed her eyes, slamming her head on the headrest. "Ugh… we'd better come up with a feasible story."

"Well, as far as he knows, we're mates, you and I, and we met a while back."

"If we leave it at that he'll see right through us. Plus, look back…" She tilted her head in the direction of the sleeping little girl in the baby chair. "She's practically your spitting image. He'll figure it out, trust me."

"Bloody hell…" He rubbed his beard with his hand. "Swan?"

"Yeah?"

"What exactly is a Red Socks jersey?"

Emma laughed aloud and explained Eddie's taste in fashion to the eighteenth century buccaneer. When she tried to explain Baseball, he compared it to Rounders. And as far as he was concerned, Rounders was a girls' game.

What a fool. What an adorable fool.

It felt so much like a domestic bicker… and neither seemed uncomfortable with it until the sound of their voices made the baby stir and they immediately simmered down.

When Henry returned, Emma moved from the seat to bend I forward and allow Henry back in. He placed the paper bag containing the goods and offhandedly handed a Twix bar to Killian. "Here; I know you wanted rum, but this will curve your anxieties."

Killian took the candy bar from Henry and grinned. "And what have we here, then?"

Henry's eyes widened. "Aw come on! Please don't tell me you have no Twix in England!"

"England?" Killian winced, confused.

"Erhm, yeah! Yeah, they do!" Emma cut in. "Here, Killian, let me help you out." She snatched the bar from his hand and opened it. "There. Should be easier now, shouldn't it Hoo… Killian?"

"Cheers, love." Killian took the candy and gave her a thoroughly sarcastic grin.

"So…" Henry spoke after stuffing his mouth-full of snickers. "What happened to your hand?"

"HENRY!" Emma turned suddenly, scolding the boy. "That is just way out of line!"

Killian smiled. "That's quite all right, Swan, the boy has a curious nature." He turned to him. "A crocodile got it."

"No way!"

"Aye, m'boy, a rather small but terribly lethal crocodile. A matter of seconds and boom, hand was gone."

Henry laughed. "Like Captain Hook!"

Emma did a face palm.

"Y… you know of that?" Killian furrowed his brow.

"Are you kidding? I've seen that movie so many times, it's practically a cult film! Peter Pan cut it off to feed it to the crocodile and so on."

Killian was about to snarl when Emma grabbed his hand and impulse the candy bar into Hook's mouth. "Killian, your chocolate's melting. And you, sir, " She turned to Henry. "What the heck got into you, with all these remarks?"

Killian chewed, his expression mellowing with each mastication, as the deliciousness of his first ever candy bar melted into his tongue. "Bloody hell, this is good…" He mumbled, turning around and ignoring both Henry and his mother while she continued to reprimand him for his brashness, as he absent-mindedly chewed on his Twix.

"Ok, fine, just…. One more thing: Does he know Eddie?" Henry whined. "Because mom, seriously, either they're related or you have a pattern…"

Killian turned to Henry again, but said nothing, his third Twix bite still being ground between his teeth. He then turned to Emma with a huge smirk.

Emma's eyes narrowed; His very expression read something along the lines of '_Yeah, Swan, am I related to your Eddie or do you have a preference for dashing men such as I?'._ Cheeky son of a bitch.

"Yeah. Killian is Eddie's… erhm… twin brother."

That made Killian swallow suddenly. He simply stared at Emma for a few seconds, before turning an agreeing and forced grin to the boy with a nod.

"So, how come he's got a British accent and Eddie didn't?"

"School, my lad. Different schooling." Killian finally smiled.

"Yeah. Yeah, that's why. Schooling." Emma agreed. "Killian was sent to… erhm… Southwickhamshireuponworcester… to study."

She regretted her terrible concoction of what to her sounded like a terribly British-sounding town that really didn't exist.

"Where?"

"Southwickhamshireuponworcester, lad." Killian grinned. "Naval academy. Spent most of my life there."

That got an impressed glance from Emma. _Wow, he's good,_ she thought as she grinned.

"So…" Henry narrowed his eyes. "You are Lilly's uncle… and sort of my non-official step-uncle."

Killian turned his eyes to Lilly, still asleep and oblivious to the events. "Aye… "

Henry nodded and sat back. "Okay then, fair enough. That explains why my mom didn't think twice in introducing me to you…" He produced his PSP. "I still think it's way cool that you dress like a pirate and that you got your hand chopped off by a crocodile."

"Ok Henry, that's enough!" Emma started the engine and pulled out for the road, the boy turned to his PSP and Killian tried to stifle laughter with another chunk of Twix.

oooooooooooooo

He spent exactly three nights in the enchanted forest. Three.

And each night was sprinkled with night and day dreams of her; the taste of her lips was still somewhat fresh on his own, so he took to repeatedly licking them till they were chapped dry. His skin had an imprint of her entire body and all he had to do to feel himself harden was to only think of the feel of her, all of her, as he deliciously moved within her inner walls, unlocking the door to that deeply intimate secret heart of hers. If he closed his eyes and drew breath deep, the fresh, fruity scent of her hair still filled his nostrils and it seemed the only way he could manage to feel sleep come to his eyes was by closing them tight and just remembering the sound of her voice in his ear, breathy, panting and so beautifully surrendered: "_Killian… oh god, Killian, yes… yes… that's good, so good, Killian…._"

And after that, in a dreamscape of his own, he'd be holding her in his arms, clad in a magnificent ball suit; she'd be dressed in a gown, red and brighter than all the stars, and they'd be waltzing together in a golden room. He'd be smiling and she'd smile back at him, a delicious little red flush on her china white skin to match the scarlet of her lips, their eyes locked into each other's gazes, just drifting to the sound of the music, like a distant hum behind the beating of their hearts.

Dreams like those would make his nights tolerable, even beautiful; but they were still just dreams. He'd wake in the middle of the night, still smiling, only to see that even the beauty of the stars that he woke to look at paled in comparison to the ghost of her memory. Then the smile would disappear and a hollow little ache would resurface in the middle of his chest.

He was familiar with that pain.

It meant that what was left of his already shattered heart had finally been broken apart.

"Emma…" he'd feel her name roll onto his lips and out his mouth, a mild whisper, a prayer, accompanied by a single tear rolling down his temple and into his hair, as he continued to stare into the night sky, trying to find the thrill in the celestial bodies above that always salvaged him. The guidance of the stars on the firmament were his sole companion, every time.

Perhaps it was time to seek the company of his old friends… the sea, the ocean breeze, the humming of whales in the night and the morning squawks of seagulls and bells at the port. The wobbling sight of a compass and the sound of the waves on the hull of the Jolly Roger were calling out to him. His heart was crushed; it would be back to piracy and a life of self-servitude.

How very thrilling. Not.

With Emma gone, he felt like a useless little pawn in a vast game of chess, one he knew he'd lost the very moment he'd seen her cross that stupid town line in her little yellow vessel together with her boy.

So after that third night, he asked for a horse, collected supplies for a trip back to the south docks and prepared for the journey back to the beckoning sea.

As he strapped a satchel to his horse's saddle, he was approached by his now friend and former foe, Emma's father David, now completely clad in his princely garb and looking every bit the part of future king. So… Emma really was a princess. What had he even been thinking? He was just a pirate, a buccaneer who lived a day-to-day existence looking for a bigger and better deal, day in and day out.

A princess.

Nonetheless, he grinned at David as he approached. "That's quite a bit of supplies you have there, Hook…" He placed his hand on the horse. "Planning to set up a market place?"

"No…" Hook grinned back, pulling a strap and tying it. "You know what they say about being ready, and all…"

"No need to overload the horse, buddy, the queen's castle is less than a day's ride from here. You won't need anything when we get there, you'll have everything you need."

Killian sighed sad. "Aye, well… that would be really lovely, IF I were going to the Queen's castle."

He was making a point of avoiding David's stare. He had slept with the princess! He had no regrets, but was starting to feel slightly ashamed of having even dared to think…

"Wait, you're not coming with us?" David frowned. "Hook, we can use a good fighter like you! Where are you going?

Killian stopped and sighed again, looking at the floor. "Listen, mate…" He finally managed to look into the prince's stunned gaze. "This is your home, your birthright. Mine is the Jolly Roger. With this new curse, everything that belonged to us has been returned, that means my ship is still out there." He grinned at his friend. "All I have to do is find her."

"What if she's not there?" David huffed.

"Well, I'll just have to take another one, won't I? After all, as you once said, I'm nothing but a pirate; and that's what pirates do, isn't it?" He winked at the prince.

David shook his head. "And here I'd thought you'd changed."

Killian raised his eyes and looked at a blank spot in the distance. "I had. But now I've no reason to. You were right. You won, mate." He placed a hand on David's shoulder. "I'll never have her. Not now, anylord…"

David closed his eyes and hissed, shaking his head. "No, come on, Hook, I didn't…"

"Oh, it's all quite all right there, prince!" Killian grinned. "I've no hard feelings. With or without Emma…" he nodded. "I'd still save your sorry arse if circumstance called for the occasion." He climbed on the horse and looked back down at David. "I've tried the whole 'hero' thing, mate. It didn't take."

David felt a slight tinge of remorse take over him as Killian slipped his boots into the bridles. Snow approached, looking rather annoyed at his sudden desire to leave.

"So that's it?" She sneered at him. "Emma's gone and so you're leaving?"

"Aye, princess…."

"Back to being a pirate, I assume." She pressed her lips together.

"Back, milady?" He chuckled. "Not, 'back'. I've ALWAYS been a pirate. However…" he nodded at both. "Regardless of what you two may think of me, you have my word: Should you need of me, for a quarrel, a rescue mission… and should it be in my hands…" He grinned. "You can rely on me, my vessel and my sword. As a friend." He shrugged. "Your daughter would ask it of me."

David smiled fully and Snow was stunned to silence. The prince reached up and held his hand out. The Captain side-grinned and reached for David's hand as well. "Best of luck, Hook. Hope you find your ship. And don't be causing too much trouble… 'mate'".

Killian grinned back, shaking the prince's hand. "Same to you." He turned his face to Snow and gave a quick nod of acknowledgement. "Your highness…" He then clucked his tongue, pulled the strap and clicked his heels, and the horse galloped away, leaving the prince and princess staring at the saddled figure that vanished into the distance.

And the prince had an ear to ear smile as he rode off.

Snow sighed and walked to David's side, grabbing his hand, her fingers entwined with his. "You know…" She spoke softly. "Despite what we may think of him, I really do believe his heart is legitimately broken."

David nodded. "Yeah. I know the feeling."

"Do you think he'll be all right?"

"Hook? Are you kidding?" David chuckled. "He'll outlive us all."

Snow turned into the general direction where the pirate had left. "Won't be easy. I know why he's left." She sighed. "He wants to replace the memory of Emma with his stupid boat. He won't be able to."

"Nope. But he's got to figure that out for himself."

"He must be hurting pretty badly…"

"Yeah…" David chuckled and turned to his wife. "And you wanna hear the real punch line of this?" Snow grinned and raised her brows expectantly. "I was actually really getting to like the pirate bastard. I'll actually miss his pathetic face yearning for our daughter…"

Snow laughed and held her husband, wrapping her arms around his waist. "Well, you heard him. He'll be around."

David sighed back and leaned in to kiss his wife's forehead. "Come on. If we leave now, we'll be there before the sun goes down."

And crossing through the forest on his way to the docks, Killian pulled the reins on his horse for a second, halting the gallop. He was now a couple miles away from the petite committee of friends.

He stopped cold, his gaze suddenly blurred by heavy tears.

The weight of the world had fallen on him again, and he had tried hard to harden, to be the rock he'd always been… But the ache was now too hard to ignore.

And let it be known to the world that the mighty Hook, Captain of the Jolly Roger, heaved and cried the day he left his friends, his soul a million shattered pieces, and a single sound left his lips as he shouted it at the heavens above him.

"SWAN!"

oooooooooooooooooooo

"Hey! Are you still with me?" Emma smiled, turning her gaze from the road to the pirate and back to the road.

"Hm?" He turned, finding relief in seeing her there, smiling at him.

"You were completely gone…"

He smiled at her. "Just reminiscing, Swan."

"A good reminiscence?"

"Alas, no." He shook his head, lips pressed together. "And before you ask, I truly don't care to elaborate."

Emma shrugged. "Suit yourself."

Silence. How did silences ever get to be so wonderfully confortable with her?

Lilly's sudden gargling and whimpering broke the sudden space of quietness. Killian turned around and found his daughter had started to wiggle, her gorgeous little face scrunching. Henry, who had fallen asleep, started to stir at the sound.

"Swan?" he frowned.

"Oh…" Emma grinned as she pulled over. "I think it's lunch-time for the munchkin." She freed herself from the seat belt and stepped out of the car. She walked around it and asked Killian to step out so she could fold the seat forward and pull the baby girl out. Henry settled again and was gone within seconds.

Emma sat, holding her daughter, on Killian's shotgun seat, with her feet touching the ground, while Killian hovered around, trying not to look in the direction where her daughter had started to suckle.

Emma chuckled. "For a badass pirate who knows his way around the world, you're awfully coy at times."

"Not coy, Swan." He replied, his face a scarlet red. "This is just rather unorthodox. Where I come from, mothers never allow men to see the moment where they are nursing their child, is all." He huffed and ran his hand down his beard. "This might just need a little getting used to."

Emma smiled. "Pity. It's actually quite nice."

Killian felt aware of the cars passing by through the highway and felt a sudden, compelling urge to do the gentlemanly thing; he removed his leather trench coat and created some sort of division between the line of sight and the young mother. He tried to continue avoiding visual contact, but his gaze accidentally stumbled on Emma's swollen bosom and the little girl's tiny mouth wrapped around the pink niplet.

No thought of sex or wanton desire, crossed his mind, even if he had discreetly taken a good gander at Emma's wonderfully swollen bosom earlier on; this looked sacred, almost as if Swan's breast were some sort of grail… and the look of peace on the baby's face was truly evoking the strangest emotions any man could ever feel.

He unavoidably started to grin.

Emma raised her face and caught him gawking; he didn't even bother to remove his eyes from the view.

"Told ya." She grinned.

Killian swallowed. "Wh… what does it feel like, Swan?" He asked, his eyes still glued to the vision of the little one chowing away on her mom.

Emma sighed. "Well, it took a while to get used to it. I was kind of sore for a while. And she bites and tugs at times and between the soreness and the tenderness, I swear to god…" Then she shurgged and saw Killian finally looking into her eyes with what appeared to be legitimate curiosity. "So… it hurts?"

"No. Well, not any more. It did the first couple of weeks but now…" She shrugged. "It's nice. It's… closeness, you know?"

He nodded, even if he truly didn't know a damn thing. "Just how many times a day do you have to do this, Emma?"

"On a bad day?" She rolled her eyes up and pouted as she calculated a number. "Five, maybe six. If she's on a good roll, she'll go for eight."

Killian laughed. "She'll grow big."

Emma nodded and once again, they both fell into silence, as Killian observed with keen and true curiosity as Emma suddenly changed the baby from one breast to the other… and he gasped when he saw the now abandoned bosom dripping.

"Bloody hell, Swan!"

Emma laughed. "It's just milk."

"Aye, I know it's just milk, love but…" He chuckled nervously. "You're sort of…. Leaking."

"It happens."

"Can't you… make it stop?"

She shook her head. "It'll stop on it's own… unless you want to help?"

He rolled his eyes at hers. "What?"

"Yeah. Just go into my bag and you'll find a packet of little round pads. Take one, come back here and just sort of… press it against me."

Ok… he loved her, for sure, and yes, he wanted to touch her, kiss her, cover her with his hand as much as he could… but this was an odd request. He swallowed hard and looked at her in panic. Emma laughed. "God, you'd think I asked you to kill the kraken!"

"I assure you killing a kraken is easier…"

"You're being ridiculous again, Killian." She sighed. "You're a part of this. Come on, help out." She bit her lower lip jokingly. "Pleaaaaase?"

He met her gaze and huffed. Truth was, that seeing her in this state, mothering his child, was something he had frequently dreamt of in secret silence. If helping Emma dry her nipple was a part of fathering a child with her, then by the gods of the sea, he'd do it.

And no. Killing a kraken was certainly to easy fete.

And yes. He was being ridiculous.

He sighed and covered Emma and the baby with his jacket. "Just to show you I'll do anything for you, woman…" he huffed, walking around the bug in search for her bag.

He found the artifacts easily enough; they looked like individual, breast shaped cotton cups. He returned back around with one in his hand; Emma used her free hand to give him his coat. He was slightly put off bu the fact that he saw it had a round milk stain on t now, but said nothing as he knelt and, wincing, took a shaky hand to the still dripping breast.

This was not at all like grabbing for pleasure.

He sighed, gently pressing the cotton on to Emma's breast.

"Okay, now give it a gentle pinch."

He turned his head up to her face suddenly. "Beg your pardon?"

"Oh, you've done it before…"

"Context has varied greatly, love!"

"Killian!"

"Ok, fine, erhm…" he felt himself gently fold the nipple between his fingers, wincing. "Like… so?"

Emma giggled. "There, done. See?" she wrinkled her nose at him. You're a pro. Now can you just… sort of… cover me up?"

He sighed deep and removed the pad; indeed, the leaking had stopped, and he grinned. "It worked!" He bit his lip as he pulled Emma's blouse shut.

"There, see? You're alive."

He smiled at her, staring deeply into her eyes. "You are bloody marvelous."

Emma smiled back at him before turning to her daughter who was unlatching from her other breast. "Ok, we're done!" She grinned. "Give me that thing, Killian…" She took the pad from his hand and immediately pressed it against herself as the infant pulled away, looking decidedly sated. She even licked her little chops, which made Killian chucle amusedly. "Ok, she needs burping."

"Burping?"

"Sure. Wanna try?"

The captain stood straight, a smile splitting his face in two. "After I survived drying up your bosom, Swan, I'll try anything once."

She instructed him to produce a little bit of cloth that she also had in the bag and to put it on his shoulder. This time, she allowed the pirate to sit and she taught him how to effectively burp his daughter; he used his handless arm to press the babe against his own body and his hand was patting her back gently, waiting for the belch. When she did, he emitted a loud cackle, complementing her on having inherited his "pirate skills".

Holding her still, he rolled his eyes up at Emma.

"What is it?" she frowned.

He said nothing; only smiled. He then turned his face slightly, his lips gently reaching the black, fuzzy little head, and he gently deposited a kiss on her daughter. And he remained there, leaning his cheek on her, his eyes closed, looking decidedly blissful.

This…. Was the villainous, evil Captain Hook. The visual contrast of the leather-clad, one handed pirate with tattoos, a pierced ear and eyeliner, tenderly holding and kissing his newly found baby daughter in his arms was indeed a sight.

And Emma could have sworn she felt her heart do a triple somersault.

She found it impossible not to make a hasty run for her phone and snap a photo of that perfect little moment.

Looking at him during that impeccable, bonding minute as he held his little one by his shoulder, she understood what that brief little gaze had meant; it meant the world. It meant thank you, it meant she was wonderful for having had this angel with him, it meant he loved his daughter now more than he could have ever imagined… and it meant he now worshipped adored the young mother of his child even more than he had before, and was now in this for the long haul.

In spite of the sudden and unexpected fear the feeling gave her, she felt something click inside… she believed him. This was and would always be the father of her little girl, and she trusted him.

She trusted him with her daughter. His daughter. THEIR daughter.

They stopped three more times along the way, and by the third, Killian was automatically playing his own part; and the burping was decidedly his favorite.

It was starting to get dark when they finally crossed the state line into Maine.

an explanation to all his endless questioning. He's a very clever lad, he won't quit."


	6. IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE

**DEAR ALL:**

**FIRST OFF, I AM WALLED BY YOUR RESPONSE TO THIS STORY. I AM GRATEFUL AS ALL HELL FOR YOUR WONDERFUL REVIEWS AND YOUR FAVORITES AND SO ON. THIS HAS BEEN THE MOST SUCCESSFUL STORY I'VE WRITTEN SO FAR, AND I AM DEEPLY TOUCHED BY YOUR RESPONSE.**

**UNFORTUNATELY, I HAVE JUST BEEN NOTIFIED THAT THERE IS ANOTHER STORY WITH THE SAME PLOT-LINE AND WITH PRACTICALLY THE SAME, IDENTICAL NAME, ROLLING AORUND TUMBLR...**

**NOW I DON'T DO PLAGIARISM; I HATE THE THOUGHT OF PEOPLE COPYING ANOTHER PERSON'S IDEAS, SO IF SOMEONE ELSE WROTE A FANFIC CALLED "LILLY" THAT FOLLOWS A SIMILAR PLOT TO MINE, THEM I MIGHT HAVE TO TAKE MY STORY DOWN, BECAUSE EVEN IF IT IS A VERY UNFORTUNATE COINCIDENCE, IT STILL MEANS THE IDEA WAS SOMEONE ELSE'S BEFORE MY OWN BRAIN CAME UP WITH IT. OR COULD HAVE BEEN THE OTHER WAY ROUND, I DON'T KNOW, BUT THE PERSON WHO INFORMED ME OF THIS TELLS ME THAT HE/SHE HAD READ THIS OTHER STORY BEFORE, SO I'M GOING TO GIVE MY VERSION OF "LILLY" A TEMPORARY HIATUS WHILE I FIGURE OUT WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON.**

**THANKS ALL, I KNOW YOU ARE ENTHRALLED WITH THIS, BUT I HONESTLY DON'T WANT TO BE TREADING ON ANYONE ELSE'S TOES.**

CUTE MCBEAUTY


	7. Father to Father

**NOTE: GOOD NEWS! AFTER A BUNCH OF POSTING BACK AND FORTH, I MANAGED TO HAVE A GREAT EXCHANGE WITH THE AUTHOR OF THAT OTHER STORY, AND AS IT TURNS OUT, WE'RE QUITE AMMICABLE REGARDING MY OWN 'VERSION' OF IT; AS IT HAPPENS, IT IS ALL INDEED JUST A RATHER UNFORTUNATE COINCIDENCE; OTHER FOLLOWERS HAVE INSTRUCTED ME OF YET ANOTHER STORY WITH A SIMILAR PLOTLINE SO I'M SURE THERE WILL BE A FEW OUT THERE THAT MIGHT COINCIDE. SO GOOD NEWS TO MY FOLLOWERS, "LILLY" WILL CONTINUE! **

**I WANNA THANK THE FOLLOWING PEOPLE: FIRST AND FOREMOST, ASHERYVE, FOR JUST BEING UTTERLY COOL. THEN THE FOLLOWING: NOUQUERET , ALEXANDRA SARAFOELAN, LEXIE MCSTEAMY, KT, ONCEUPONABENEDICT AND SKYEWARDMUSICLOVER, FOR LOYALLY FOLLOWING THIS STORY. AND OF COURSE, ANYONE WHO HAS FAVED IT OR FOLLOWED IT OR MADE A REVIEW… YOU ARE ALL PRECIOUS NUGGETS AND I LOVE YOU ALL.**

OOOOOOOOOOO

David was washing the dishes.

Yeah, even the prince washed plates from time to time. Especially now that his wife, heiress to the throne Snow White, was at least seven or eight months pregnant and had taken to resting her swollen feet more often now.

A new royal baby! That in itself was a wonderful thing, except… except…

OOO

"_DAVID!"_

_The dashing Charming woke up, startled. "Hmm? What? What…!"_

"_David, I'm pregnant, my god!" Snow wept._

_Still half asleep, David turned a crinkly eye to his wife. "What… sweetie, are you… when did you…?" he grinned. "Oh, Snow, that is… wonderful! The baby we wanted! It's…"_

"_No, David, I mean… I AM REALLY, REALLY PREGNANT!"_

_She pointed down at herself. David turned his smiling face… the smile vanished and he woke up in less than a fraction of a second. He bolted out of bed, aghast. _

"_Snow! What the hell happened!?"_

"_I don't know!" she wept hysterically, sitting up on the bed, her hands open as she pointed at a very prominent pregnant belly. "I don't know! Yesterday we were saying goodbye to Emma and now…" She turned her bloodshot, teary eyes to her husband. "David, I'm scared! What happened to me? Where's Emma? I…"_

_Calming down and touched by her panicked state, David ran a hand through his hair and walked around the bed to console his wife. He held her to his shoulder._

"_Come on, Snow. There… Shhh.." He caressed her back. "Well, you know, this is Storybrooke…"_

"_But weren't we supposed to be in the Enchanted Forest?" She sobbed. "David, something's happened."_

"_Yeah, I'll say…" he rolled his eyes and then held her by the shoulders, looking into her eyes. "Look, the first thing we'll do, is go to Whale, see if he can give you a check up, because you are very… very definitely pregnant and, well… that's a priority. Then we'll go around town and ask people, maybe they remember something we don't. Ok?" He caressed her little black pixie hair and dried her tears from his face before cupping it with both hands. "I promise you, we'll make heads out of these tails."_

_Snow sniffled, nodded and grinned at her husband. "I love you…"_

_David smiled at her and leaned forward, kissing her forehead first and then her lips. "You know, I may never tire of hearing you say that."_

"_Good. Because I have no intention of stopping."_

OOO

The memory of their discovery a week earlier had David still pondering about the events that were unfolding.

A tap on the door dragged him from his musings as he tossed a dishcloth over his shoulder and closed the taps.

He opened the door.

Emma.

His heart jumped, both with joy and excitement as well as with fear. She had left the town… or had she at all?

Emma raised her hands "Hi! Wait, don't close the door, please! My name is…"

"Emma!" David smiled fully.

"David?" She fell into her father's embrace.

"Honey, you remember!"

"So do you!" She pulled away with a smile as he let her in.

"Of course we remember! What are you doing here?"

Emma closed the door behind her and shook her head. "Yeah, well… Hook found me."

"Hook?" David frowned. "but he was with us yesterday, how come he…?"

"Well, he said he left you right after you arrived in the Enchanted Forest."

David looked decidedly puzzled. "So…" He paced around, hands on his hips. "We DID go back…"

"Well, he brought me here, he said that you were cursed!"

Prince Charming scratched his head. "Cursed, or we never left… I don't know, Emma. The last thing we remember was saying goodbye to you. We don't know… but we're trapped again."

Emma frowned. "But you do know who you are…"

"That's the thing about this curse, we don't know who did it or why… all we know is that the whole year is gone, wiped away."

"Wiped away?"

"Yeah, saying goodbye to you feels like yesterday…"

Emma shook her head. She knew it had been a year. She remembered it all.

"It's odd, I mean yeah, it's been a whole year, but how do you guys know it's been that long when you don't remember ever…?"

"Emma?" Came the voice of her mother as she ran down the stairs.

Or wobbled down the stairs.

Emma's eyes widened. "What the…?" Emma grinned as she held her mother in her arms. "Wha…?"

"So, as you can see a lot has happened." David grinned as he hugged his wife.

"Yeah. We just have no idea what." Snow smiled at Emma. "You do remember us!"

Emma stood staring t her mom's very pregnant tummy. "I have a pretty good idea what happened." She chuckled. "And yeah, I do remember. Hook came to me with a flask of memory potion, two days ago."

Snow furrowed he brow. "So… you did forget."

"Yeah. Everything." She nodded and looked to the floor. "I was living on some awesome memories… but they had nothing to do with this… life of mine." She shook her head, her eyes switching from David to Snow. "Who did this?"

David huffed. "We have no idea."

"We have our work cut out for us, then. Regina?"

"I doubt it…" Snow chipped in. "She's just as confused as the rest of us."

Emma nodded in agreement. "Besides, I don't think she'd cast a curse where henry ahs no idea who she is."

"Good point." David added. "By the way, you said Hook brought you back?"

"Erhm… yeah." She grinned. "Yeah, he did."

Snow shrugged. "Well, where is he? He usually tags after you like a puppy…"

Emma sighed. "He's over at Granny's, babysitting. Since Henry doesn't remember you guys, I figured it would be best if… we … stayed in separate living arrangements."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

She then looked up at her parents' faces. "There's another thing we need to talk about."

David and Snow stared at her expectantly. "Sure. Anything." Snow nodded. "Let me put on the kettle and we can all.."

"No, no…" Emma shook her head adamantly and dragged them by their hands to the little living room. "This can't wait for tea."

They all sat own around the little coffee table, with David and snow staring intently at her. "So?" David shrugged. "What's… going on?"

Emma clasped her hands together. This, she was sure was going to be…. Heavy.

"During this year… I… kind of…" she shrugged. "Had a baby."

She raised her eyes and found both David and Snow jaw slacked and silent. She continued. "Yeah. Her name is Lilly. Three months last week." She reached into her pocket and produced a photograph from her wallet.

Snow's face immediately was clad with a huge smile as David looked over her shoulder. "Oh my God, Emma!" Snow laughed softly. "She's… beautiful!"

David just laughed softly, also looking at the photo.

Snow looked up at her. "Please don't tell me Hook's babysitting for both this little thing and Henry!"

"Yep." Emma nodded confidently. "And he's damn good at it, too."

Snow frowned and shrugged, not entirely convinced. But then David's smile disappeared.

"Wait wait… waaaiiit a minute!" He held his hand out. "You said she's… three months old?"

"That's right."

"So… she was conceived… a year ago."

Emma winced, showing her teeth. "Yeah…"

Snow shook her head. "But around tat time you were with us all the time…"

Emma huffed and ran her hands p her face with a sigh. "Ok look… " She started. "When I driving away, my memories were suddenly very, very different. In these memories, there was this guy, his name was Eddie." She swallowed. "He had been a professional baseball players and had almost made the Red Sox, but had an accident that disabled him and well…" she shrugged. "He was a coach; at Little League and in a grammar school." Emma grinned softly. "I remember just… adoring him. Eddie was a guy you guys would have just gone crazy for, you know? He was kind, he was witty… gorgeous. But then, there was a fire in our apartment. Supposedly, Henry and I had gone to the theater and when we returned, everything was gone…" She fidgeted. "Including Eddie." She finally looked up into the eyes of her parents. "And, according to the curse, that fire prompted our move; when I was driving away from Storybrooke, I was supposedly moving to New York with Henry to start over. And I didn't know it then, but I was already pregnant."

David frowned. "So you also… don't remember what happened for real?"

"Oh, God…" Emma stood up and paced before sitting back down with a decided huff. "I remember everything." She sighed and swallowed. "Ok, here we go. Remember that… Regina said she could hold the curse for another twenty-four hours?" Both parents nodded. "Ok… and Henry spent that whole day with her? And I spent the whole day with you?"

"That was a nice day." Snow smiled nostalgically.

"Yeah, well, remember I told you I needed a drink and that you guys really shouldn't wait up?"

"Yeah…" David nodded.

Emma grinned nervously. "I didn't exactly go for a drink…" She bit her lower lip. "I… went to… the … Jolly Roger. I went to Hook."

Snow and David paled as Emma continued. "He was… pretty crushed. It was no secret he had feelings for me but until that moment I had no idea how…. Well, bottom line is… things sort of… well, you know…" She closed her eyes and took the plunge. "We spent the night together."

"WHAT? I AM GONNA KILL THAT SON OF A BITCH!" David stood suddenly, making Snow jump.

"DAVID!" Snow scolded him, pulling him back down with her hand.

"No, no no no, I told him never, ever to lay a hand on you!" The prince was livid. "And now this! He not only broke that trust but he knocked you up! What kind of…?"

"Ok, enough!" Emma stood up. "Are you even going to listen or will you continue ranting without knowing what the hell is really going on here?"

Quivering in anger, David tried to breathe deep as he sat back down.

"Look, if you have to know, I was the one who went looking for him, ok?"

"But Emma, " Snow shook her head. "He took advantage! He should have seen that you were vulnerable and…"

"I wanted it, Mary Margaret! He was just as shocked over m request as you are!" She snapped. "I was explicitly looking for him so we could get together! Don't you get it?" She ran her hand through her hair. "We were never to see each other again. He was hurting and… believe it or not, so was I. And you know what? It was a perfect, perfect night. Both of us woke up in tears. I swear, if that curse hadn't happened, we would have probably wound up together anyway." She swallowed. "I already knew how he felt about me." She stood up and paced around the couch to the window, hands in her back pockets. "The moment Killian came to New York and I saw him again, something kind of… snapped in me. I didn't know him… but his face was just eerily familiar." She turned to look at them. "When I first opened the door, I was holding Lilly. His smile was… priceless. But not two seconds later, when he saw her, he was… stunned." She turned to them. "That's how he discovered I'd had a baby." She returned to the couch and sat down with a serious sigh. "I kicked him out. But he had given me a memory potion flask… I drank it after he was gone and it all came back to me. And then it dawned on me."

Snow swallowed. "Killian Jones really is Lilly's father?"

Emma blinked several times before grinning. "Yeah. He is. And not just that…" she looked at David. "Killian is Eddie."

David's face softened. "You mean… in your cursed memories, you kind of killed him?"

Emma nodded. "It was only a way to explain that I was pregnant and alone… I guess that's how curses work, the magic knew I was pregnant way before I did."

There was a brief silence in which everyone simmered down.

"So, he's looking after Henry and… Lilly, is it?" David swallowed.

Emma chuckled. "I figured you'd flip your lid. He wanted to come, but the last thing we all need right now is a fight amongst us if we're to get to the bottom of what the hell is going on. So I asked him to stay with them."

"Are the two of you…?" snow looked at her.

"No. I don't know. We're… friendly." Emma shrugged. "He's just been so… wonderful these last two days, he's helped a lot, he obviously fell crazy in love with the baby, so… I'm sort of giving him a chance to be at least that." She chuckled. "We're like… really close friends, at least for now."

"But he's still in love with you…"

"Head… over… heels…"

"And, are you sure that that baby is in the right hands?" Snow asked wearily.

"Hand." David corrected.

Emma rolled her eyes up, staring daggers at her mother. "Jesus, you guys, what the hell happened to you during this year?" She stood up and reached to her back pocket for her iPhone, where she searched for the photograph she had taken of him, all clad in leather, his heavy jacket hanging on the door of the car and his eyes closed, a lovely grin plastered on his face, holding little Lilly over his shoulder. "There! See? That's your dread pirate captain Hook!"

Snow's gaze softened and she felt an unavoidable grin trace her lips. "Well… He does look… happy. David?"

David grunted and took the phone from his wife, looking at the image. Even he had to admit it was a nice image to see, but he was still sore. "Look, I don't know. He's a pirate, you can't trust him, he's pretty self servant and …"

"I can't believe you…" Emma replied softly, snatching the phone away from her father. "You of all people!" she swallowed angrily. "He saved your life AND mine! He saved Henry with all of us! He… found me in New York and he didn't really have to, but all I know is that when he did, he hadn't eaten for three days!" She shook her head. "Whatever happened to second chances? Or was that all just… fairy tale propaganda talk?" She placed her phone back in her purse. "You should have seen him the first time he got to hold her. I'll have you know… your self-serving pirate? He was in tears. Yep. The man cries, what a shocker…"

"I'm sure your father didn't mean it that way, Emma!"

"No, he did!" Emma snapped back at her again. "He totally did! And the worst part about it? He was a friggin' shepherd! Where does he come off, moaning about me getting involved with a pirate?"

"I just want my daughter to have the best she can have!" David shouted back.

"AND WHAT MAKES YOU THE JUDGE OF WHAT'S BEST FOR ME?!" Emma shouted back angrily. "Because you certainly weren't there for the most of my life! I can make my own decisions, and trust me, I know how to take care of myself, so if you'll excuse me…" She snatched her purse from the couch. "I'm gonna go help the "evil pirate" before he uses my daughter as a sacrifice for the moon god, or something." She reached the door and turned around. "Granny's at nine, tomorrow. And bring a muzzle for David, Mary Margaret, because Hook will be there." She eyed them both angrily. "And that's the thing: He always is."

And she slammed the door behind her.

Snow sighed and shot a fiery glance over at her husband. "You… sleep on the couch tonight." She barked and stood up, pacing up the stairs.

"Oh, come on, Snow!" He moaned back. "You have to agree it's far from what we wanted for Emma!"

"It's not a matter of what we want, David!" she turned back, hitting him on the chest with the photograph of little Lilly. "It's what Emma wants! She is right! She has made her own choices ALL her life."

"But Hook?" He sneered.

"Hook… DID save you butt, Charming!" Snow barked back. "We're always going on about changes and second chances! What the hell!" she ran a hand through her hair. "She's a grown woman. And this, whether you like it or not, is our granddaughter, and Hook's child, which kind of makes him a part of the family. Now, for Emma's sake, either you stomach it or stay the hell out of the way, because I'm willing to go on a little bit of faith with the pirate here. They had a child together, they're practically a family. Deal with it!" she turned and went up the stairs in a hurry.

David stood there, huffing and shaking his head. He then took the photo of Lilly that Snow had slammed on his chest and looked at it.

He grinned. She had Emma's (and Snow's) dimpled chin, and that was probably all she had on the Charming side; the rest was Killian Jones. She was a beauty, even he had to admit.

He sighed and sat on the coffee table, still looking at the baby in the photograph.

"Second chances…" She whispered.

He then stood up and reached for his jacket. Hearing him rustle around with keys, Snow paced down again. "And just where are you going?"

David pressed his lips together and turned to his wife as he adjusted the collar of his jacket. "To find our daughter and apologize for my behavior. And to have a drink with the Captain."

"Don't make it worse, David…" Snow pleaded.

"Actually…" He side-grinned. "I have no intention of it. I just want him to man up and tell me to my face what his intentions are. That's all. And I'm sure that given his famous "good form", even he will understand that."

oooooooooooooooo

Killian had taken an old Socials magazine from the counter-top. Both henry and Lilly were blissfully gone to the world and he relied on the moonlight to find the words and follow them. Except that the contents were… odd. They spoke of a bunch of people, socialites, and he figured these people were rather like the royals back in the Enchanted Forest. There were pictures of weddings, parties, opening events, sports matches, all displaying finely clad and visibly refined people.

"There's one in every realm…"

The baby stirred and whimpered and Killian immediately put the magazine down, pacing to the little girl in the bassinette. "Ahoy there, m'love, what's your pleasure?" He smiled, reaching down for her and holding her to himself. "There we go… shhh…" He whispered. "We don't want to waken your brother now, do we? He'll start interrogating your father and we don't want that, now…" He leaned in and kissed her and was delighted to see Lilly smiled back at him, which in turn made him smile too. "Yes, lass, you know me, don't you? Hmm?" He chuckled. "Aren't you a marvelous little piece of work?" He sat down and raised an eyebrow over to Henry who had moaned something in his sleep, but had quickly settled back down. He looked back at his daughter, who was making happy whispery sounds as she wiggled her little hands. She then grabbed a hold of the charms on his neck. "Oh, you like those, do you?" He smiled. "They're yours then, my princess… Not much of a heirloom, I regret. But yours, nonetheless…" He caressed her little head with his thumb, whispering. "I never would have imagined this would be a day I'd live to see. I never thought I'd ever deserve or even want this… privilege. And yet, here you are, aren't you, my darling girl? I can be called a father, thanks to you. And a father of a bloody little beauty, for all I know. I thank you, Lilly, from the bottom of my heart. I truly, wholly thank you…" He continued staring into her pretty little face and found himself suddenly humming a sea shanty for her, ever so softly. When she stopped wiggling and fixed her eyes intently on his face, he chuckled. "Want a song then, darling? Your pirate dad knows very few songs suitable for your gentle little ears, but there is one I believe you'll enjoy…" He touched her hand and the baby immediately grabbed a hold of his finger, making him smile fully. "I take it you want to be sung to, then, my wee highness?"

He leaned back on the chair and sighed before he began to sing softly.

"_A fair maid I met in the shorelines of yore,_

_who was my beloved when we reached ashore._

_A lover she made me, and later a man,_

_And finally, a father, my heart in her hand._

_So sailor, sail swiftly and turn back the sail,_

_I'm missing my lady behind her white veil,_

_and clad in white laces, my maid in the sea,_

_So sailor, sail swiftly, 'cause she waits for me."_

"And it sings…"

Hook shot his head up suddenly and smiled. "Swan, how long have you been dropping eaves?" He chuckled. "Bad form."

"Just as you started singing." She paced to him as she removed her jacket. "Didn't know you could sing so well… look at that."

They both looked at the now sleeping baby. "Aye… she's out cold. She was moaning a little while ago, so I sort of…"

"Well, you 'sort of' real good." She looked at his face. "She adores you. I can tell."

He smiled. "Good. It's mutual." He then stood and walked to place her back in her little crib. "So? How did we fair?"

Emma sighed as Hook turned to her, baby-free. Emma shook her head. "It'll take them a while. Especially David. But they'll come round. You should have seen Mary Margaret's face when I showed her the photo of Lilly." She grinned. "She lit up. They both did, actually, it's just that David's a little more.. erhm…"

"Oh I know of it, he's a stubborn arse."

"Yep."

"I can understand him, Swan…" he looked in the direction of Lilly's crib. "At least NOW I can understand him. He may be a little biased, but he means well. You are his daughter. And…" He shrugged "A princess who just had a child with a pirate. Can't be easy…"

"I know."

"Pity. I do remember us being on rather good terms, back when we got to the Enchanted Forest…"

"Really?" Emma sat down, pinching her brow with interest. "What else do you remember, Killian? Because they're a complete blank, in fact… " She shrugged. "Mary Margaret's really… really pregnant."

"Is she indeed? Well, many happy returns for your sisterhood, Swan."

"Hook… she doesn't remember it. None of them do."

He fell into silence. "Can you elaborate, please, love?"

She huffed. "The last thing they remember is saying goodbye to me. The rest of the year? It's all gone."

He swallowed and sat beside her. "That's odd. The bird I received, it held a note, saying I should come for you, because a new curse was bellowing. But I thought curses made you forget even who you are…"

"So did I. I guess they REALLY can be modified according to need…"

There was a brief silence, comfortable as always. The dark ambiance, the moon shining through the window… and the sight of Killian holding Lilly and singing to her…

Emma turned suddenly and found herself leaning on his shoulder. Killian gasped and held his breath, before he too leaned his head on hers, his heart pounding so strongly he feared it would pop out and wake Lilly.

It was a perfect, silent moment. No need for speeches.

Till a tap on the door broke the magic spell.

Emma stood and opened the door.

David stood there, looking slightly flushed, and Emma placed a hand on her hip. "What, come to chop hands?"

"Come on!" David pleaded.

"Now, now, Swan, no need to gnarl…" Killian pulled the door open and faced David, his eyes staring directly into his. "He's just being a father."

"Well, that's kind of you." David grinned sarcastically at him. Killian merely returned the grin. "So you guys are… sleeping in the same room?"

"No mate, I am in the loft, upstairs. I was just playing nanny for Henry and the little one while Swan here delivered the… tidings."

David looked relieved and Emma was peeved. Killian pushed her gently and stepped aside. "In any case, it seems I'd be best if I head up to my quarters, where I can't do any more damage. Night Swan."

"Killian…"

"No, no, it's fine, love. It's good form."

"Hook, hold on." David raised his hand at him and then turned to Emma. "Look, Emma, I was completely out of line back there, I apologize." He shook his head. "I'll get used to it."

"Used to what, having another grandchild?" She sneered. "I mean, are you sure you want her to be? Her father's a pirate…"

"Please…" David pleaded.

"Swan, come on." Hook echoed. "Your father came to apologize, it's not an easy thing to do…"

David turned a shocked look at Killian before looking back at his daughter.

Emma pressed her lips together tight. "Fine." She grinned. "Apology accepted."

David sighed and turned to look at Hook. "Listen, you… wanna get a drink?" He shook his head. "I do want to straighten out a few points with you."

"Come on!" Emma huffed. "Is it really necessary?"

Killian paced back to the Prince. "Actually, love, it is." He nodded. "He's only doing his duty as a father. Just needs to be sure."He tilted his head in the direction of the exit. "So, shall we?"

"Yeah, just…" David shuffled his foot on the floor. "I'd like to… see her. May I?"

Emma shrugged. "Actually, she's asleep and…"

"Of course you may." Killian pushed the door open and held Emma's daggering stare. "Just try not to wake her, mate."

David stepped in with a smile and Emma took two steps towards Killian. "What the hell!"

"What harm can it do?" He shook his head. "You're his family, Swan. You don't have to be so mean."

Emma looked into Killian's eyes and wondered what had happened to the bad-ass sword wielding one handed swashbuckler who had followed Cora into Storybrooke, shot Belle and helped Greg and Tamara.

She sighed. "I'm just trying to draw a line here…"

"And keep your parents behind it?" He shook his head. "Swan, for someone who's looked for love her entire life, you seem awfully keen to push it away as well. Just let him be your father… the way you're letting me be Lilly's."

Emma looked down and swallowed in silence. He had always managed to see clean through her and sometimes she felt worse than just nude with him.

She hated it. But she loved it.

David stepped out, teary eyed and smiling. "Ok, Pirate, let's go."

Killian nodded and held out his hand. "After you, highness." He grinned at Emma. "Sleep well, Swan. I'll be by early to help you out while you ready yourself…"

Emma nodded and grinned. "Ok. Good night."

ooooooooooooooooo

"Still a rum guy?"

"Aye. Always."

David sighed and tapped his empty tumbler on the table a few times, savoring the taste of the amber Scotch Whiskey he'd just shot back. Killian, on the other hand, was slowly enjoying the contents of his glass.

"Come on, Hook." David sighed. "What really happened there?"

Killian raised his face to the prince. "What do you mean?"

"You and Emma."

The pirate sighed, and an unmistakably happy grin upturned his lips. "The night before she left, your daughter sought me out on the Jolly Roger. I was wrecked, knowing I'd never see her again. We talked… and she asked me some rather… deep questions." He turned to look at the prince. "You know of my feelings for her, do you not? I have been clear on those since the Echo Cave. And I'm not one to deny them now." He sighed and smiled. "She asked me to… take her. I hesitated at first, didn't know if t was the right thing or not, but you don't ask a man in love twice, when she is so willingly giving herself to you, if only for that one time. And more so if you know it's the only opportunity you'll ever have to equally give yourself to her… or at least that's what we all thought then, that we'd never see her again." He looked straight into David's eyes. "Make no mistake, mate: What transgressed between your daughter and I during that night was sacred to me; I beg of you, do not tarnish it with thoughts of mere wanton copulation on my part."

David cleared his throat; the wording 'wanton copulation' was as good a description as any, although in reference to his daughter, it did sound a little… crass. Nonetheless, he was grateful to Hook for his honesty; 'Sacred', he had said. Sacred… a word he knew well when it came to sexual contact with his own wife. Sacred….

He nodded and looked at him. "You still feel the same way about Emma?"

"No." He was quick to reply, and even quicker to continue before David punched him in the nose. "I love her even more, if that is at all possible."

David nodded. "Must have been a shock, finding her with your child."

"That… it was. But to tell you the truth, mate, it's probably the best shock I've ever experienced." He took another sip of rum. "The babe is a delight."

Charming nodded and swallowed. "When Emma told us that you had been together, I kind of lost it."

"We both knew you would."

David shook his head. "You seem to have a good head on your shoulders now, though, Hook." He turned his face to the pirate. "I may be wrong, but I think I'll give you a fair shot. I know you and Emma aren't together, but I also know you want to be."

"More than anything." Killian chuckled, taking a final gulp.

"You win her over, then you'll win me."

"Not that I'm too interested, mate, but…" He winked at the prince. "I do believe I won you over long before the wee lass was born."

David chuckled and smacked Killian's arm. "You're an idiot."

"And you're a stubborn arse, but no one's complaining there, 'Dave'. You must be; your daughter had to get it from someone."

David nodded. "Be good to them."

"I always am."

"And Henry?"

Killian sighed. "He's a fine little man, but he has his own father."

David huffed. "We don't know where Neal is."

"What?"

"Many people are missing. This new curse… either if picked out only the few it wanted, or something is happening to other Storybrooke inhabitants. Some of the dwarfs have vanished; Neal is nowhere to be found. And there are a few new townspeople who were not a part of the original curse… It's crazy." David looked at him. "You were with us… how come you weren't here and you were able to find Emma?"

Killian nodded. "I think I'll tell you all tomorrow at the meeting. For now…" He stood and grunted. "I find it best that you go home to your lady princess and explain to her of my villainous, fiendish intent to not just help you sorry lot set your affairs in order in this town… but to win the heart and soul of her daughter yet again, in good form."

David smiled and nodded. "Stealing my daughter's heart… You thief…".


	8. Memories and fear

She rose in his arms. First time... and last.

Emma turned to look at the man she had shared the night with. Her neck was sore from sleeping on his arm. Actually, her entire body was sore. Beautifully sore. He still slept; she was slightly stunned to see him asleep. His cocky self-appreciation had seemed like a nuisance before, but seeing him in that state, sleeping, vulnerable, calm, made her realize his narcissistic remarks weren't too far off the mark: The man was really, really gorgeous. His lashes were long, black and curly, and they framed his eyelids like two black waterfalls, cascading around the edge of his eyes, which she already knew were a cobalt blue, deeper than a summer sky.

She grinned and delicately touched his face, gingerly running her fingertip down the scar by his nose, wondering where and how that had happened. What stories lay behind this man's multiple scarring? She hated thinking she would never know now. There wasn't enough time. She would have to be up in a minute, to clean up, collect her son and some meager belongings, and head for the town line, say her goodbyes, and cross into the oblivion that was to become her new life.

And just as she had those terrible and inevitable thoughts, he slowly opened his eyes.

As if woken from the gentlest of dreams, he grinned slowly. "Morning, love…" he mumbled.

"Not quite morning yet." She whined.

"But it is. The sun has started to cast shadows…"

"Shadows. Stupid fucking sun. That's all it does today, cast shadows." She huffed as she pressed her body to his and hid her face in his chest. "Make it go away."

She felt him swallow hard as his arms instinctively wrapped around her. "Aye, Emma, alas, I cannot… that I could, my love, and I'd do it without delay."

She tilted her face up and kissed him under his jaw. "Come with me, Killian… with us…"

She felt his body tense up and her lips felt his jaw shake a little. She didn't have to look at his face to know he was already fighting tears. "Oh Swan…" He pulled her harder to himself. "Where it not for the nature of this bloody stupid curse, I'd not hesitate, sweetheart. But this sorcery will take all those who belong in the forest, except for you." She finally heard him snivel and her own eyes finally welled with tears. "But you asking me to come with you? That means more to me than the entire world, Emma. Gods, I…"

"Shhh." She pushed away and found his eyes, reddened and shiny, staring back into hers as his tears flowed sideways into his pillow. She pressed her fingers to his lips. "Then leave it at that, Killian. Say no more."

He reached to dry her own tears just as she dried his.

"I love you Emma…" He smiled breathily. "Never forget that. You'll know it, deep down. You'll always feel that once upon a time, there was a pirate who had lost his way…"

"Killian…"

"Who has hell-bent on death and misery, alone and angry at the entire world… until a princess came and saved him from the blackness of his own accursed existence. The most beautiful woman in the entire world." He touched her with the skin of his wrist, devoid of a hand. "And that he loved you… more than he loved himself or anyone or anything else." He sniffed. "I know your heart will remember that. Even if you do forget his face and his touch."

Emma wept steadily, and she nodded. "You'll always be in there somewhere…"

He grinned and sighed as he stood up. "Come… we should see the sunrise."

"Don't wanna."

"Swan..." He turned to look at her. "As long as the sun rises in the horizon, there is hope for a new day tomorrow as well. And hope is all we have now." He held his good hand out. "Come, love…"

Emma grinned and allowed herself to be pulled up into his embrace as they both headed for the deck.

The morning as even more glorious than the dusk had been; He sat, leaning his back on the mast, and her leaning into his chest, both just holding each other as the sun lit up the sky and the blues of the ocean reflected the infinitely gorgeous shade of his eyes.

"I have faith in this, Swan… in us. You may not know it still, but I know you… and I know how you feel, even if you're too scared to say it. I understand. And where it up to me, my love, I'd wait for you forever." He leaned his chin on her shoulder and kissed it, before whispering into her ear. "There's not a day will go by, that I won't think of you…"

She smiled and leaned harder against him as she sighed, and reached up her right hand to caress his face as it sat in her shoulder. "Good…" She whispered.

They remained silent as the sun made them both squint.

As the initial light finally subsided a little and the ripples of the water started to glow a silvery reflection, Killian pulled her to him one final time, turning her face to his. "Whether in this life, or the next… I will find you. I will see you again, Emma Swan. Make no mistake."

She grinned broadly and sniffed before gently pressing her lips to his. "I'm counting on it…"

oooooooooo

Quarter to nine at Granny's diner.

Her gaze was lost into the haze of the past when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She shook herself back to the present and found him again. It was like an instant flood of relief.

He had come back. And she smiled sheepishly.

What the hell was this guy about, anyway?

"Are you still amidst the living, Swan?" He smiled as he sat before her in the booth, his eyes discoursing from Emma to Lilly, who wiggled happily in her mom's arms, fed and clean and wide awake.

"I was just… thinking about what might be… going on here, that's all. People missing, a curse…"

"I woke to the sound of that moany dwarf, shouting something about "bad news"…" He shook his head. "Apparently, they found a few dead animals on the edge of the woodland. Ripped up, they said."

Emma chuckled. "Yeah well…" she shook her head. "A dead seagull is more than enough to set that guy off."

Killian smiled back at Emma, and they both remained there, with a silent grin.

"I never thanked you…"

The pirate reached out and toyed with his daughter's lip with his index. "For what, love?"

"For not letting go. For finding us."

He turned his cerulean eyes up to her and gave a gentle nod. "It was the right thing to do."

Emma shook her head. "But that's not why you did it, is it?"

He held her gaze and grinned. "No. I also did it because I told you I'd find you." He shrugged. "I told you I play in good form, Swan; I'm a man of my word."

"Yeah, that was the last thing you said to me."

Emma stared into his eyes. "What did you and David talk about last night?"

"You, of course." He shrugged. "But a father and a gentleman never disclose their congress."

"Aw come on!"

He laughed softly. "I'll trade you some of that information if you let me hold the little one."

"Really?" Emma smiled, brows raised. "You want to negotiate using your daughter?"

He winked at her playfully. "Pirate."

Emma laughed aloud and reached out to hand the little girl over to him. Hook held out his arms, fake hand instead of hook, and huffed happily as the little bundle landed in his arms. "Good morning lass!" He smiled. "You're smelling like the dew this morrow!" He kissed her head and the baby wrinkled her face at the feel of his scruff.

"So tell…" Emma nodded. "A deal's a deal."

"And I shall keep my word." He nodded. "We had a drink, he apologized for being an arse and I explained to him that the events that unfolded between you and I were not, let's say, merely carnal." He shrugged, his gaze entranced in his little girl's, who was smiling at him. "He seemed content with that."

"You didn't tell him everything, though, did you?"

"The details of that evening were for you and I to recall, Swan, not him."

"That's not what I meant."

He looked up at her and sighed. "He did ask…"

"And?"

He held his stare at her. "Why lie? If I had loved that bloody brilliant, amazing woman before, how do you think I would I feel about her now, that she's the mother of my child? Hm?" he raised a questioning brow at her.

Emma swallowed and blinked a few times. "Look, Killian… I…"

"Don't, Swan." He grinned. "Look, I know how your mind works. Trust me, I set off to win your heart. I already won it once, alas fate had a different plan for both. But hear me when I say this: I will never, ever stop fighting to be worthy of your full, unbridled affection. And you will surrender your heart to me, Emma. I've no hope; my heart is already in your grasp, and I truly don't care to have it back. It is yours." He side-grinned at her. "I told you the fun would begin here… And you know, you don't have to say a word to me… I know you're scared. But I also know how you yearn for me. No need to say it." He winked at her. "But don't doubt it for a single second, love: I have your back, I always will." He nodded. "I still love you, Emma. I will do so till the day I die. Need you know more?"

He pulled his hand back from Lilly's face and held it open atop the diner table. Emma looked down on it and then back into his eyes; she had seen this before: the exact same pleading gaze and his hand, waiting to be held, up on the beanstalk… right before she chained him down.

Enough betrayals, she thought, as she grinned and reached out her hand, grabbing his.

The light in his eyes glowed and he smiled the biggest smile she had seen on his face ever. She smiled back.

"Tell you what, pirate…" She huffed. "I make it a double dare."

"What will I wager?"

"Just your allegiance."

"You have that already."

She stared at him square in the eye. "Make me feel for you the same way you feel about me." She gave his hand a gentle squeeze. "And we'll see where we go from there."

He laughed aloud… What an amazing laugh. "Well, love, I do love a challenge…"

Hey continued gazing at each other, smiling, her hand in his… when the bells of the diner door interrupted them and they pulled apart instantly, straightening up in their seats and turning to meet the gaze of Mary Margaret and David Nolan.

"Emma, oh, god!" Mary Margaret made a beeline to them, her eyes fixed on the baby in Hook's arms. She looked at him, grinning, and nodded in acknowledgement. "Hook…"

"Your highness." He nodded back, instantly handing the baby over to her.

"Oh… oh oh oh oh…" She smiled as she held the little girl in her arms, with David also smiling over her shoulder. "Hello baby girl! Hiiii!"

David nodded his head in Killian's direction. "Hook." He then turned to Emma. "And Henry?"

Emma shrugged. "He'll be here soon. He was taking a shower when I came down here."

Mary Margaret sat next to Emma, absorbed by the little girl. "Oh, she's just… I can't…" she raised her face at Killian and the pirate was slightly shocked to see her smile at him. "She's got your eyes!"

"And hair… and smile and… pff, what am I saying? She's practically his carbon copy." Emma added.

Killian simply beamed with pride, and turned to Snow. "I can see you're not too far off the mark there, either, princess…"

Snow looked at him and shrugged. "Yeah. I just woke up and there it was."

Hook frowned. "Aye… I heard of it." He looked up to David. "It's like harvest time and you don't remember planting. Bad luck, mate."

Emma kicked him under the table while David huffed and Snow rolled her eyes. He just grinned ruefully.

"Mom!" henry's voice chimed from the back of the diner as he entered the diner. Emma waved him over.

As he approached, David spoke between his teeth. "He's grown…"

Killian chuckled. "So has his prying. Watch what you say to him, mate. He'll question everything."

He sat next to Killian and looked from Snow to David. "Henry…" Emma smiled. "These are David and Mary Margaret."

"Are you guys helping my mom with the case?"

"Thus it begins…" Killian grinned and he and David exchanged a knowing glance.

Henry frowned and turned to his mom. "Are they the ones who skipped bail?" He whispered.

Emma smiled. "No! No they're… just… old friends."

"Your mom and I were cell-mates in Phoenix." Mary Margaret nodded.

Killian stifled a chuckle.

"Really?" Henry seemed keen. "What were you in for?"

"Banditry!" She grinned.

"Is that even a charge today?" he frowned.

The pirate no longer knew what to do to hide his smile.

The sound of a cup smashing drew their gazes. Regina…

She stood there, her face transfixed on Henry, who in return just glared right through her. David, Hook and Snow all looked down, probably feeling her sorrow as her own son saw her like he was looking at the village idiot. "I…I'm sorry to…have startled you…" She mumbled on the brink of tears.

"Oh… that's ok." Henry shrugged and turned to his baby sister, reaching out to touch her face. "Can I hold her, uncle Killian?"

"Uncle?" Snow mouthed at him and the pirate simply raised an eyebrow and one shoulder in return.

"Regina… we need to talk." Emma stood up and disappeared in the back with the Queen.

Henry, Hook, David and Mary Margaret all sat around the table; Snow turned to look at David with a knowing glare, and he nodded. "Erhm… henry… do you like fishing?"

The boy shrugged. "I… never tried it."

"Wanna have a go?"

He frowned a t the tall, blonde prince. "What… now?"

"Yep. I have a tacklebox in my truck! Your mom knows all about it."

The boy nodded. "Ok, sounds like fun." He stood up and looked at Hook. "See ya, uncle Killian."

Seconds after he and David had gone out the door, Emma came back with a tery eyed Regina. "He's gone?"

"Yeah, it worked. " Snow sighed. "Uncle Killian? Really?"

Regina turned to look at the pirate… and the baby in his arms. She frowned and pressed her lips together. "Well, well…"

"Aye. You can thank Emma for that."

Emma chuckled. "Part of the curse gave Henry and I the memory of a guy named Eddie, a boyfriend of mine." She tilted her head in the baby's direction. " He kind of died. And it so happens that he looked just like Hook."

"I don't follow…" Snow grinned.

"The lad kept asking me whether I was related to this… Eddie bloke. So, swan here…"

"I told Henry he was Eddie's twin brother."

"Wait, wait one second…" Regina raised a hand. "You and this … Eddie guy had a kid. But Eddie was not real, except he had the pirate's face, which means…" She looked from Emma to Hook. The blonde woman nodded with a grin and Hook winked at her. "You do the math, love."

"You two had a kid together?"

"Yep." Emma nodded.

"But… how?·" She sneered.

Killian laughed. "I'm fairly sure you don't want to know the particulars, there, your majesty."

"You're right, I don't." Regina said, suddenly smiling at the baby. "I gotta say though, captain… she's quite adorable."

"She would be with that devilishly handsome father." He nodded.

Three eye-rolls, one cackle and a baby gargle.

Regina looked at the little girl closely as she sat next to Hook, smiling mildly. "Hook, Emma…" She looked at the happy parents. "You don't mind if I…?"

"No, not at all." Emma smiled and looked at Killian, who was ever so slightly reluctant as he handed hs precious little baby girl over to the Queen. Regina was instantly delighted. "Oooh, look at you! Oh…" She studied her brow. "Hey, she has a rash just under her hair line."

"Yeah, I noticed that this morning." Emma frowned. "What do you suppose that is?"

"I have no idea. Henry never had any odd disorders, he was a perfectly healthy boy…"

Killian tussled the baby's hair and frowned upon seeing the odd, scabby mark. Snow also peeked in. "Maybe Whale should take a look at her…"

"Oh no need. It's called cradle cap. It should go away on its own. It doesn't hurt the baby."

All faces turned up to find a stunning, ginger-haired woman looking down on them with a massive smile. "Oh, my, what an adorable little girl!" she exclaimed. "I'm rather good at telling character traits… She looks like she probably sleeps through the night, too, does she not?"

"Yeah, she does." Emma nodded, looking dubious.

The woman shook her head and smiled again. "Oh, my apologies, I've not introduced myself." She held her hand out. "My name is Zelena. In our world I was a midwife."

"A midwife!" Snow's eyes brightened. "So… is this your first time in Storybrooke?"

The woman shrugged shyly. "Yes. I missed the last curse." She turned her face to Emma. "I've seen a lot of new mothers. Don't worry.." She then looked to Snow. "You will learn quickly."

"I have another child." Emma replied, still looking dubious.

"Hmm." Zelena grinned at her. "I am surprised you didn't know about baby cap, then." She then turned to Hook. "And, from the looks of it, you must be the proud father."

"I am indeed." Killian smiled.

"Oh…" She looked at Regina and held her hands out. "May I?"

Regina turned her face over to Emma; the blonde girl bit her lip and nodded with slight reluctance.

Zelena took the little girl in her arms. "Ohhh, look at you, you are adorable! She smiled and then turned to Emma. "She should start teething soon. They begin between three and four months of age, it's quite the nuisance for them. Now you might think this is unorthodox…" She winked at Emma. "But a spot of rum rubbed on her gums will do wonders…"

"HA!" Killian laughed and smacked his open hand on the table.

"Listen… Erm… Zelena, is it?" the redhead nodded. "Did you say you were… a midwife?"

"I was, yes. And you are Snow White, are you not?" She said as she rocked the baby in her arms.

"Yeah! Well.." she shrugged. "Here I am known as Mary Margaret."

"I am honored, Princess."

"Look, do you think you could… Well, I might need some advice." Snow shrugged.

"Your highness…" the woman smiled again. "I would be more than honored!"

After a few more seconds, emma stood up suddenly and stood before her. "Could I… have my daughter back?"

"Oh, but of course!" The woman said, with a huge smile on her face, as she handed Lilly back over to her mother. "Marvelous little creatures, babies." She grinned at everyone. "The most wonderful and pure of all beings. Such innocence!" She bit her lip and turned her happy face to everyone. "Well, I should be pushing off now. Mary Margaret?"

"Yes?" Snow smiled kindly.

"I do hope we meet again. Helping Snow White with her baby… what an honor!" She nodded a farewell at everyone there before she left.

"Well, that was lucky!" Snow smiled.

"Yeah… lucky." Emma frowned, suddenly feeling the need to press her little girl closer to her own body.

And Killian only needed to take one look at Emma to know something was really very, very wrong.


	9. That was close

**MADE IT TO 100 FOLLOWS! CEEEELEBRATE GOOD TIMES, COME ON! =)**

**TO CONMMEMORATE THIS VERY JOYOUS OCCASION, I WILL BE TAKING PROMPTS! INBOX ME WITH IDEAS OF WHAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO READ THE NEXT CHAPTER AND I WILL PICK THOSE THAT I THINK I CAN MERGE AND MAKE A GOODCHAPTER OUT OF! THIS HAS BEEN MY MOST SUCCESFUL STORY HERE ON FF, AND YOU HAVE ALL BEEN WONDERFUL IN YOUR COMMENTS AND REVIEWS! SO HERE WE GO! SEND ME YOUR IDEAS **

OOOOOOOO

During their scouting trek in the forest, Killian, David and Robin, the forest bandit, had seen a monstrosity the likes they had never seen before… and later that evening, at the hospital, one of the members of Robin's posse (he liked to call them "Merrymen", which amused Killian to no end), who had been attacked by one of these beasts, had quite literally transformed from human to… monkey.

A flying monkey.

"Flying Monkeys?" Snow sneered as she heard the report. "They're being turned into flying monkeys?"

Killian nodded. "Aye, saw it with my waking sight; the man took on a simian form… with the added bonus of wings."

Emma huffed and shook her head, closing her eyes. "Is this even my life?"

Snow bit her lower lip. "You think this has something to do with the missing dwarves?"

"Well, we haven't found any of them, so this could explain it." David frowned. "Or Neal…"

Neal. Hook had all but forgotten about the mention of that name. His gaze shot straight at Emma who made a very poignant point of avoiding eye contact. "You don't know where he is?"

"No one has seen him." Regina quipped.

Hook huffed and licked his lips. "He'll turn up, Swan. He always does."

_Like a bad bloody penny_, he thought.

"Miss Swan…" Regina added. "You grew up reading about us."

"Yeah, so?"

"Flying monkeys?" The Mayor grinned. "Even I know exactly what that means… who we're dealing with, the one who cursed us."

Emma chuckled. "Who, the Wicked Witch of the West?"

They all glared at her in all seriousness and Emma returned their stares with dumbstruck shock. "What? Seriously? She's real too?"

"Love, you're the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming…" Killian grinned.

"And you just had a baby with Captain Hook…" Regina added.

"And a son with the son of Rumplestiltskin." Snow nodded with a grin.

"…who was adopted by the Evil Queen." David said.

"Ok, fine, I get it!" Emma raised a hand. "Let's just… focus on finding this… woman, whoever she is."

David ran a hand through his hair. "Ok, so now that we know who we're dealing with, how the hell do we find her?"

Killian rolled his eyes. "Well, we could start by asking the townsfolk if they've seen anyone with green skin running around town."

"When cursed and in Storybrooke, she'll look like anyone else." Regina grinned at him.

"You fail to appreciate my sense of irony." Killian grinned back at her.

"Look, whatever and wherever she is, she's going around town, and we can't let Henry wander around with her on the loose!" the queen cut in, and pointed at Emma and Snow. "Let alone you two, one with a three month old and another practically on the verge of popping."

"Classy, Regina." Snow smiled with no humor at all.

"Listen, you are really not appreciating the big picture here!" Regina barked. "Henry is vulnerable, Emma! She has flying monkeys! Contagious…. Flying monkeys!"

"Aye, and I hate to remind you all of this, but one of them 'flying monkeys' could very well turn out to be his father."

"Someone needs to protect Henry… to take care of him."

Emma looked at Regina. "I guess you're volunteering."

Regina shrugged. "You have your hands full, Miss Swan. You're even nursing, I may assume."

"I am."

David sighed. "Well, just don't forget, Regina, Henry has no idea you are his…"

"I am well aware of how he sees me, Charming." She snapped.

Emma looked down as Regina went to seek out the boy, who had gone with the dwarves on another fishing trip. While Regina had had her past, when it came to Henry's welfare, she was a team player.

Snow sighed and rubbed her face. "This is going to be a looong week."

"Yeah." Emma concurred.

At that precise moment, Lilly woke and cried. Emma rubbed her temple and stood up from the couch. "Probably needs a change…"

"I got her, love. Stay where you are." Killian looked at her. "Try and think of ways we might identify this sorceress, before any more dwarves go missing…"

As Hook bounced up the stairs, Snow turned with a friendly grin to Emma. "And he changes diapers… Single-handedly. And tat's not even a pun."

Emma chuckled. "Yeah. And burps her… and he gives her her bottle when I can't take care of her and sings her to sleep. Caught him last night." She raised her eyebrows. "Pretty good voice, too."

David grinned. "A whole new side to the pirate."

"Who knew?" Snow shrugged.

"Wouldn't it be pathetic if Hook wound up giving me parenting tips?" David smiled.

Emma chuckled. "I'd pay to see that." She looked at Snow. "I might not need to, actually..."

"SWAN?"

Killian's holler made Emma stand and fly up the stairs like a bat out of hell. She stood by him as he tried to hush the hollering baby girl, who normally only needed his touch to simmer down. "Something's not right, love…"

Emma looked at her daughter's pained expression, and touched her little face. "Oh, god, she's burning up." She took the baby from him and sped downstairs. "We're taking her to the doctor…"

Killian was right behind her, carrying the little one's bassinette.

"Wh… what's wrong?" Snow stood quickly.

"She's quite feverish." Killian swallowed. "Best if the town medic takes a look at her…"

A tap on the door caught their attention, and David went to open the door.

"Oh, thank goodness, I got the right address!" Zelena smiled.

David grinned. "Zelena, is it?"

"Yes. You must be Prince Charming!" She held her hand out as the prince shook it.

Emma stared wearily at her, holding her very upset little girl.

"Oh, no…" Zelena winced. "What's wrong?"

Hook sighed. "That's what were setting out to discover."

"She's got a fever." Emma spoke abruptly.

Snow walked to Zelena. "Maybe you can help?"

"Oh I would love to!" She looked at all of them. "Maybe I can at least soothe her? Babies frequently get mild tummy infections that are quite easy to control. Here, let me try…" She held her hands out.

Even though she had her finest smile plastered on her beautiful face, Zelena didn't manage to make Emma produce a single friendly grin.

"Emma, let her try!" Snow nudged her.

The blonde girl's lips were pressed tight together as she handed her precious little girl to Zelena.

"Oooh, darling child, there there… shhh…" She touched her face and turned back to Emma. "Oh she is indeed feverish. Princess Snow, might you have a drop of honey and some milk? Lukewarm."

"Yeah, sure…."

"Well, if you have her bottle, mix three measures of milk and one of honey. And can I have a fresh set of clothes and a damp towel?" she smiled at Hook and Emma, wrinkling her nose. "Her hands are clammy so I do believe it IS her tummy. We'll fix her in no time."

Emma hovered around Zelena as the woman expertly changed her clothing, rubbed her little stomach with the fresh towel and fed her the lukewarm milk and honey, explaining to them that honey was a natural antiseptic and an excellent way to control mild infections.

After twenty minutes, Lilly needed her change, and once that was done she slept soundly, the fever completely gone.

Emma looked at Zelena. "Just… how many children did you take care of?"

"Oh, I lost count!" Zelena smiled. "But I can tell you this: none was ever as beautiful as this little one. Does she have a name?"

Killian nodded. "Aye. Lilly…"

"Jones." Emma added.

Killian's face turned sharply to Emma and it didn't take a genius to figure out the look in his eyes meant he was deeply touched.

David broke the eerie, adorable silence. "Well, you're certainly one to have around in a sticky spot!" He told Zelena with a smile as he produced his wallet. "What are your fees?"

"Oh, for heaven's sake, don't even think about it!" She smiled back, pushing his wallet down. "It's but a pleasure." She handed Lilly over to Emma. "Lilly is an unbelievably good little girl. I am glad to have been of assistance. Now… She turned to Snow. "…About you, your highness, let's all sit down and talk about YOUR little one!"

"Oh, yeah!" Snow smiled from ear to ear. "I'll make some tea. David?"

"Erh… yeah! Sure!"

Killian and Emma exchanged looks. "Well if you don't mind," He grinned, raising his hand. "… we'd sooner go and put her to sleep properly. She might need her rest, being sick and all."

Zelena turned a perfectly charming face to the pirate. "That is the best thing you can do! And continue with the milk and honey for at least today. Tomorrow she may continue her nursing."

"How do you know I'm nursing?" Emma raised an eyebrow.

Zelena laughed a crisp giggle. "Why, by your bosom, love! It's fairly notorious…"

"Aye, that it is…" Hook whispered under his ear as he scratched his ear.

Emma sighed and tried to calm herself down with a nod. "Yeah, good point. Anyway…" She looked up at the ginger nanny and tried her best to conjure up a smile. "Thanks."

"No trouble at all, dear. If you need me, I live in the cabin just north of here, up on the hill. "

Emma and Hook left the loft in silence and descended the stairs.

"You trust her as far as you can throw her, eh, Swan?" Hook spoke under his breath.

"Yep."

"Aye… same here."

OOOOOOOOOOO

Emma ran her fingers through the lace of the bassinette, and pulled the soft, cotton blanket over Lily's shoulder. She was perfectly sound. The mother grinned a little happy grin and leaned in to kiss her little head. "God, I love you…" She whispered against the scented skin before standing straight again, still smiling. As she stared at the little girl, she heard the phone on the nightstand and Killian softly answering and talking before hanging up.

She stepped out with a frown and found Killian sitting on the bed, his hand still rested on the receiver. He turned suddenly and grinned a hilariously clumsy looking grin. "All well, Emma? Is the babe asleep?"

"Out like a light." Emma grinned back, arms folded, as she paced to Killian. "And when did YOU learn to use a phone?"

he shrugged. "It's really not that hard to figure out, Swan; you hear the bell, you take this bit here, put it to your ear, listen and talk and then put it back down." He cackled. "They're called telephones. Bloody great magic, this realm has!"

Emma laughed softly. "And in this realm we call it technology."

"Whatever the name, it's magic the likes of which I never saw before."

"Oh, Ben Franklin and Isaac Newton would slay you for this…"

"Slay me? Well, whoever they are, let them try, I'll jab them before they even get a chance to…"

"Killian, they're already dead." Emma laughed a little louder. "Technology has nothing to do with magic. It's science." She shrugged. "Like you reading the stars for guidance?"

Killian raised his face, his lips slightly parted, as he grasped the concept. "Human know-how…"

"Exactly."

"Hmm." He nodded. "Well, brilliant, nonetheless… although…" he turned a flirty grin to Emma. "The matter of the call has little to do with the technology behind it."

"What?"

"In case you were wondering, that was Regina." He sighed with a smile. "She was asking if she could take the lad to the… cinema, whatever that is."

Emma nodded. "Remind me to show you later. Yeah, ok… Means he'll be another two hours."

Hook sighed deep and stood up. "So, while your lad is busy with his other mother…" He paced to her, his voice husky. "Perhaps you'd like to talk to me about what happened earlier on?"

"Ugh…" Emma ran her hand though her hair. "Look, I know I look like a freak, but honestly, there's something about this Zelena that just gives me the creeps; she cured Lilly and everything, but I swear I can't…"

"I agree with you on that, Emma, but I wasn't talking about the midwife…" He took a step towards her, brow raised and happy, cheeky smirk. "Lilly Jones?"

"Oh, that!" Emma smiled and shook her hand dismissively. "Well, you have sort of… proven yourself… at least with her. So I just thought you… she deserved to… Well…" She looked into his eyes. "She's your daughter, Killian. She should have your name."

Killian smiled fully and stood even closer; by the time Emma noticed, he was a mere three or four inches from her face. He raised his hand and tucked a strand of her hair behind her shoulder. "Right you are, lass." He nodded. "And I thank you for it. As for Zelena…" he licked his lower lip and Emma fought the urge to touch the dampness left on his lip with her index. "I take it you used your superpower on her…"

"You're damn right."

"Is she not on the level?"

"If she is, she's got a whole new category of levels quite unlike our own."

Killian sighed. "Well, she did cure Lilly."

"I know. Much too easily." She looked into his face. "A baby her age should not drink cow's milk at all. How funny it is that she gets baby cap, and she's there to explain; then she gets a fever, and she miraculously shows up at the doorstep. Come on Killian, you've lived enough to know a rouse when you see one…"

He nodded slowly, frowning. "You're too right, love. I don't quite particularly find her entire demeanor credible… " He then turned his eyes to Emma again and the teasing, sexy little grin returned to his lips. "Gods in the sea, Swan, you are bloody brilliant."

She blinked and smiled. "I have my moments…"

"Aye, every breathing minute of the day, is your moment." He stepped even closer, pleased to see she didn't exactly pull away. "And every second in between that."

Emma's skin rose in goose bumps when his handless arm slowly wrapped itself around her waist.

She smiled at him. "What are you doing?" She spoke softly.

He sighed and playfully bit his lip. "Oh, I don't know, Swan. Where I come from, we call it wooing. Alas, normally fellows did the wooing before courting before wedding and eventually… romantic congress and more eventually, a child. But since we already skipped the first three…"

Emma laughed softly. "And what if Henry…?"

"He's out with the Evil Queen, sweetheart, and you yourself said they won't be back for at least two hours…"

She looked into his eyes, with a soft and beautiful smile. "Why?"

His smile disappeared as he reached up with his hand and touched her face with the back of his fingers. "You know very well why, Emma…" He spoke, his voice but a whisper.

She swallowed. She wanted. She needed.

She reached and touched his hand. "And then?"

He side grinned. "And then, I follow you to the ends of the bloody world, if I must…"

She sighed deep. "You… won't leave?"

He finally pulled her to himself with his other hand, pressing her body against his own, and Emma swore she felt herself being touched by lightning. "Without you and our Lilly? Not ever."

Slowly, he leaned in, his eyes closed, and grazed her lips with his own, awaiting for the response he longed for, yearned with all his might. He pulled away, opening his eyes enough to meet her green gaze. She studied his face and smiled softly, gingerly reaching to touch him too.

"Killian…" she breathed, barely a whisper, into his parted lips.

Nothing else was said as she now propped up, responding with her own lips, and allowing her tongue to first tap his lip, then his teeth, and finally, sensitively cavorting with his tongue. His hand reached into her hair, feeling the golden tresses slide between his fingers as they both lost themselves in that kiss. Her fingers felt the short clusters of silky, black shaggy hair, as she deepened their osculation. When they pulled away, he grinned and gently touched the tip of her nose before he played with the small little cleft of her chin. "She has this, Lilly does…" he whispered with a grin. "And I love it."

"And she has this…" she kissed his on the lips. "…And this, and this…" She stood on the tips of her feet to kiss each eye. "…And this.." she kissed his nose "And don't get me started on her hair…"

He smiled. "That's rather irrelevant, m'love…" He whispered against her lips, as he dropped his hand to the place where her heart sat between her breasts. "As long as she has this, I don't care…"

Emma felt touched, safe… loved.

Like he had said, the man knew how she felt. Why verse it when she could show it?

She pushed herself against him, fully, willingly, looking for his body and frustrated with the barrior that earthly clothing represented, especially when it's thick, black leather. But his response was sudden and swift, and with his lips still attached to hers, he managed to shed the long trench coat and the leather vest, leaving him with the elastic suspenders over a black and frilly cotton shirt. Her hands felt the fabric, touching the curvature of his muscled arms. Emma pulled him to her as she paced back and leaned softly against the wall, feeling his kisses move down from her face to the base of her neck. The sandy textures of his beard against her skin were an arousing contrast to the soft touch of his hand as he very, very gently cupped one breast. Emma closed her eyes and grinned. "You might not want to squeeze this time…."

He laughed into her skin. "I'm aware of it, darling…"

She used both hands to push his kisses deeper into her neck with a happy groan. "I missed this…"

He pulled away and grinned at her. "Liar… you didn't even remember…"

"I remembered."

That brought a frown to Hook's face. "How so?"

She sighed. "Eddie. He was you. And don't you dare be jealous him… " She caressed his face. "He was pretty damn good."

He smiled at her, using the one hand to skillfully undo the buttons of her blouse. "Aye, well, I owe the bloke for keeping my memory a happy one, then…"

She grinned as she pulled the cotton shirt out from under his pants. "So glad he didn't really die…"

She pulled the shirt over his head and left his hair standing funny… and he had never looked better. She had forgotten the scars, and the few tattoos peppered across his arms, chest and back and remembered the sadness it had given her to think she may never hear the story of each mark.

She felt the blouse finally slide down her body and the sudden vision of her maternity bra made her feel instantly sheepish. Not that Killian even noticed it was a maternity bra. He looked into her eyes and grinned. "I would kill to wrap my lips around those, m'love, but…"

"No, not a good idea…" She shrugged. "You'll get your chance…"

"Will I?"

"Well… " She gasped as she felt his hand gently caress the rounded left breast. "You did say you'd never leave."

"Not in this lifetime…" He kissed her clavicle before pulling away and tugging her, a friendly grin on his face, to the bed.

They lay down, him on top of her, his lips exploring (and painfully avoiding her nipples because at the time they were sacred) her body, tracing little kisses everywhere they touched her skin.

Her breathing increased and Killian rose a little to look at her, nude from the waist up and every inch as beautiful as he remembered her. He smiled. "The most beautiful woman on earth…"

She smiled back. "I'm sure that's not necessarily true…"

He shrugged. "At least for me." He leaned back down and continued feeling her. "Oh… Emma…"

She allowed her hand to reach for the brace that held the hook or fake hand in place and unstrapped it, hearing it fall to the floor with a thud. He briefly sat up to remove chaps, boots and trousers as she awkwardly also did the same before lying back down, clad only in her underwear. Killian sighed with a smile. "Gods, Swan, you are truly a vision." He leaned down, dressed now only in his (still very old) cotton undergarment. The hair on his body felt like a million little pinpricks that teased her skin into rising in a million little bumps. He kissed her again and pulled the little quilt over them before smiling at her again. "You've no idea how I dreamt of this after you were gone…"

"Stop dreaming." She grinned, as he came on top of her, determined to make her his once again.

The sudden banging on the door made both their heads turn in shock, and when as a result of the sudden sharp thuds, Lilly screamed awake, both Emma and Killian closed their eyes and huffed.

"Argh, bloody hell." He grunted.

"Who could that be?"

"I've no clue, sweetheart." He gnarled as he crawled out of bed. "But I think I'd sooner see to Lilly, or I might thump whomever's at the door in the face…"

Emma giggled and reached for Hook's shirt. "Bad form, pirate, what if it's a lady?"

"A lady would know better than to interrupt a couple during commixtion."

"Really? Does anyone even use that word anymore?" she smiled as she slipped the shirt over her body and walked to the door while Hook mumbled something else.

"Belle?" emma frowned.

"Hi!" Belle replied, looking flustered. "First and foremost, Emma, it's great to see you again, welcome back. Second, I think you'd better come with me…"

"Erm… belle, I'm kind of…. In the middle of something here? Not that I'm not really happy to see you too, but…"

Killian had already put his pants back on and soothed Lilly. He and walked to the door and opened it to peek. "Oh. Miss Belle. Good afternoon."

Belle's jaw nearly touched the floor. "Wait… what?"

Emma shrugged. "Yeah. We kind of…"

"You do know that this man tried to kill me, don't you?"

"Well you know…" Killian shrugged. "They were… extenuating circumstances." Killian shrugged.

"Twice!" Belle nodded adamantly.

Killian huffed hard. "Sorry?" he blurted.

"Wow, you really do know how to charm a girl, don't you?" Emma turned to him with a joking smirk.

"You tell me, love…" He smiled flirtatiously.

Then Lilly whimpered again and both Emma and Killian turned in her general direction.

Belle's eyes were two huge, round oh's. "Just what the hell happened this lost year, you two?"

"Long story." Emma shrugged. "So… what is it that is so pressing, Belle?"

The pretty auburn-haired beauty grinned.

"It's Neal. He showed up at the shop."

And as she grinned, Killian's face and heart fell.


	10. The pupil

OOOOOOOO

The boy had Milah's smile and the same auburn, wavy hair. He laughed the same; he moved the same way… he even ate and digressed into conversation exactly like she did.

He could watch the boy for hours and see his deceased lover within her son.

Within Baelfire's existence Milah lived on. And Killian was not one to stubbornly pursue that which he himself knew would only bring more anger into his life. He was tired. He had been in Neverland for little over one hundred and ninety six years and was not a day older… or wiser. Not until he fished the son of The Dark One out of the waters.

Bae spent exactly one hundred years at his side. Neverland, however, was a whimsical place that thrived on imagination; time didn't seem to move there… so what to the crew of the Jolly Roger felt like a mere fifteen years, to the other realms was three times one hundred.

"Now lad…" Killian pulled a new piece of parchment. "If you can balance these equations well enough to find the exact measurement of the missing vectors, you should have the exact angle of the sunrise from now till the solstice. That way, you can guide and steer merely by looking at the sun."

Bae shook his head and thumped his forehead on the pirate captain's desk. "Ugh, this is so boriiiing!" He turned to the captain. "Do all sailors have to learn this?"

"No, m'boy, sailors only learn to tie knots, swab decks and follow orders. But naval officers are navigators." He raised his chin cockily. "That's what I am. A Captain. And you shall be one too. Unless…" He shrugged. "You want to conform to obeying a Captain…"

Bae turned to Killian, full-faced. "So, learning geometry, arithmetics and calculus is the difference between being an officer and a common sailor?"

"Aye. Although…" Killian shrugged. "The officer also has to know everything the sailor knows. You can't lead a crew unless you know what the crew needs to do, can you?"

The young boy frowned. "Can a woman ever be a pirate?"

Killian bit his lower lip. "I've known a few… dastardly, fast, clever lasses. Ruthless, for the most part, and quite resourceful too, but then one has to be to survive in the pirating world."

Bae sighed. "My mother was taken away by a pirate… do you think perhaps she had become a pirate before he killed her?"

Killian's face fell.

"You seem pretty sure that it was the pirate that did the horrible deed of killing your lady mother…"

"Who else would do it? And why?" He grinned at Killian. "You're probably the only kind hearted pirate that ever existed, Killian." He reached into his pocket and produced a small piece of cloth with a wonderful drawing on it, depicting little Bae as a wee boy. "She did this, a long time ago. The night before she disappeared and my Papa and I were left alone. I remember the night papa came to tell me she was gone…" Bae swallowed. "It was terrible…"

Killian swallowed a huge lump of tears and he took a look at the drawing on the fabric, knowing his late love's typical drawing style. "I've no memory of my own mother, Bae." He spoke softly. "I am the younger of two brothers. She died… birthing me."

Bae looked at Killian and grinned a sad grin. "So, your mother died, and your papa left you?"

"Aye." Killian whispered, his eyes vaguely shining under the glow of the candle on the table.

Bae grinned. "Seems you and I are far more alike than we think." He turned back to the parchment. "So… How exactly do I solve the differentiation?"

Killian looked at the boy with profound regard, and chuckled. "Well, look here…" he pointed his hook at the equation inked on the parchment. "A and B are vector values m'boy, which means you have to figure out the exact distance from either point to point C. Now, if you do this right, it could mean the difference between stirring into calm seas or a spinning maelstrom. All it takes is a minute error for you to condemn your life and your crew's to Davy Jones' locker. So, as you can see, lad… your math is quite important. Now, we'll do this step by step…" he leaned into the desk. "Let's start by measuring the exact length and speed of vector A, shall we?"

OOOOOOOOOOOO

He sat on the bed while Emma rushed around, picking up her scattered garments. His eyes turned to look at Lilly, who was wide awake and taking a stuffed Giraffe to her mouth. The sight alone warmed his heart, but still, as he stood up and walked to her, an ancient ache pounded on his chest.

He picked the little girl up and returned to sit on the edge of the bed, placing her before him, face up. His charms dangled from his bare chest and her gaze was instantly drawn to them; she reached out and grabbed them. Killian chuckled and pulled them off his own neck for the little one to have a feel, stopping her gently every time she tried to prop the charms into her little mouth.

"Hey come on! We have to go!" Emma stopped in front of him, buttoning her blouse. "Maybe he has some idea what the heck is going on!"

The pirate looked at her and grinned. "Perhaps you should go, love. I'll stay her and look after the wee one…"

That froze Emma. "What? Why?" She asked with a frown. "Look, we can always do this some other time, Hook, I…"

"It's not the sex, Swan." He sighed.

He had never sounded so sad, she realized.

The savior sighed and sat in front of him, with Lilly lying in the middle, playing with his neck charms. She reached out and touched his face. "Is this because of Neal?"

Hook's eyes rolled up and met hers, blue against green, and he stood up with a sigh, gently retrieving his charms from his daughter and replacing them with her giraffe, which she promptly and happily popped into her mouth. He sighed and turned, reaching for the suspenders he had discarded minutes earlier. "You… just seem awfully keen to… rush by his side, is all…" He turned his face to her. "But never mind me, I'm probably just acting out." He shrugged and grinned sadly. "He is the father of your boy, after all…"

"Killian!" She stood and walked to him. "YOU are also the father of my child! What's that got to do with anyth…" She smiled tenderly, noticing he no longer even dared look her in the eye. "You're… jealous?"

He swallowed silently. Enough said.

Emma smiled fully. And reached to hold him to her. "You are the dumbest, cutest guy in the world, Captain Hook."

He chuckled sadly. "You mock me, Swan?"

"Yeah, I do… But only in the nicest way. Come here…" She pulled him to the small setee by the bed and sat on his lap. "Listen to me, captain…" She ran a hand through his hair. "You once said that neither one of you two would ever give up, remember? In Neverland?"

"Aye…"

"And then the two of you fought like two stupid little kids over a lighter?"

He laughed softly. "Not one of my best moments, I must admit…"

"Remember what you set out to win?" She kissed his forehead. "Here's a hint: It wasn't the lighter…"

"No, it was you. Your heart." He replied softly.

She smiled. "Killian… Neal's not a bad guy. He loves Henry, he…" She shrugged. "He's trying. And I understand he cares for me and will fight for me, and I'm all for that, but…" She shook her head. "…there's something I can't quite shake."

"What's that, love?"

She looked into his eyes. "I was seventeen years old, about to turn eighteen, when I first found out I was pregnant with Henry." She shook her head and looked down. "I now know that… Neal HAD to leave me so I could become this… savior thing. He never meant to, but bottom line is… I was still this stupid little girl with a huge belly in jail. No family, no friends… no one. Just me, my baby and my broken heart." She looked down. "The day Henry was born I was handcuffed to the bed, Hook. I heard him cry…. " Tears began to well in her eyes. "And believe me, it took everything I had and more to be able to turn away from my little boy." As a single tear finally cruised down her cheek, Killian started to see even deeper into this amazing woman. She grinned. "I was alone… I was terrified out of my mind and… I knew Neal was not coming back. Even when we found him in New York, it was plain for me to see that if he hadn't learned about Henry… I probably would have never seen him again." She caressed his hair. "I have nothing against Neal now. He's a good friend. And he will always be the father of my first son. But here's the catch:" She smiled at the pirate, placing both hands on either cheek. "My mind had to literally KILL you for me to get on with my life, Killian. Otherwise, I wouldn't have coped. And you came back… and you are here now. You are always here. And I know that, had you known about me being pregnant before…" She grinned and sniffed. "You would have found a way to come back to me way sooner."

"Aye, sweetheart, that much is entirely true…" He sighed and leaned his head on her now rather sizeable bosom. "Lords help me Swan… I worship the air you breathe…"

"That's good." She whispered. "Now cut it out. He may be your rival but he's still part of the gang, and he needs help. Not to mention he probably knows more of what this… whole curse is about."

"Emma… there's more. There's something you need to know."

She looked at him. "Ok… Can't it wait?"

He shook his head. "Listen, love… You've rather settled a whole load of insecurities with this little pep talk of yours and I shall be forever grateful for that, but I'll have you know…" He grinned at her. "Should you ever… change your mind and choose him, I shall be the first man to congratulate you. He may have left you, Emma, but he is a good lad."

Emma frowned. "Wow, you're kind of sounding like my father."

He laughed quietly. "Baelfire spent quite some time aboard the Jolly Roger; he was my pupil for many, many years." His shoulders fell. "When he discovered that it was I with whom his mother ran off, he blamed me… Said that it was just as if it had been I who had ripped her heart out." He shook his head. "I was the one to blame for ripping his family apart. I truly didn't care about anything other than my personal desire back then Emma. And my self-centeredness cost the life of a woman, the sanity of a man… and the respect of her son." He shot his eyes up at her. "I'll have you know, I have no loathing in me for Bae. I love and respect him, almost as if he had been my own boy, so… should you desire to be with him, I shan't get in the way."

"Oh…" she smiled weepily, hugging him to her chest. "God… you are something else…" She pulled away and grinned, reassuringly. "You promised you're not going anywhere. That's worth more to me than anything, Killian." She gave him a swift kiss on his lips. "So… I'm not going anywhere, either."

He smiled and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "You're glorious…."

She laughed. "Come on, pirate… let's get this done with and go see Neal."

He nodded and bit his lip. "Aye, I think I can handle that now." He turned to look at the little baby girl on the bed. "Ready for a field trip, m'love?"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

It was an odd mix of emotions and circumstances:

Bae and Hook, two men, one who had remained in Neverland, the other who had grown, both at least over three hundred, and each one of them had fathered a child with Emma Swan.

Killian knew there was no such thing as coincidences.

Neal seemed perky in the hospital, and terribly glad that Emma remembered him, although he was visibly ached that his son still had no recollection of him and thought of him as little more than the riff raff that impregnated his teen momma.

Nonetheless, the news he had brought with him were quite the shocker.

"I… think my father lives…" He said.

Belle gasped. "A… alive? Rumple?"

Killian rolled his eyes up at Emma, Emma to David, David to Snow, Snow to Regina and Regina back to Hook.

"Wait, Neal, how do you even…?" Emma frowned, trying to lull Lilly who had started to whimper for food.

"I just do, Emma." He grinned. "It's like a part of me was inside of me."

She grinned. "So… it's metaphoric?"

Neal laughed. "I no longer know. Hey, this is Storybrooke, maybe the old man's in my ear canal, or something…" He sighed. "He might know who this… woman is."

After exchanging a grin, Neal turned to look at everyone else. "Listen guys… can Emma and I… have a minute?"

Killian instantly shot his eyes to her from under his brow, and Emma grinned with a nod. With a sigh, Hook paced around the bed, followed by everyone else, his eyes in full contact with Emma's until he was gone from her sight.

"It's really good to see you, Em… And even better than you remember."

Emma grinned back. "Good to see you too."

"How did you..?"

"Hook." She grinned. "He found me in New York. He had some memory potion."

Neal nodded with a grin. "I wanted to ask if it's really been a whole year, but…" He tilted his head to the baby girl. "I guess that in view of the evidence…"

"Yeah, it would be a moot point." Emma laughed back.

"She's quite a looker."

"Thanks…"

"Does the looker have a name?"

Emma laughed. "Lilly."

He smiled and touched her little hand, before turning his eyes up to Emma's. "Jones?"

She pressed her lips together and nodded. "Yeah." She whispered.

He remained quiet, staring at the little girl with a knowing grin. "He's an honorable man. Beneath it all, he really is. I didn't give him a chance, but… " He shrugged and smirked. "I now that when he loves someone, he'll do anything in the name of that affection. He did try… with me. But I was a kid and I was angry…" He then turned his face o Emma. "You do know I just… want you to be happy, right?"

Emma smiled broadly. "Yeah…" She reached for his hand. "But we can be cool…"

He nodded back. "Yeah we can. Hey, a guy can lose and still wear a smile, right? I'm not a sore loser, especially when the opposition's a guy with a heart of gold."

There was a brief silence and Emma was rather relieved that it wasn't as comfortable as the moments of silence with Killian.

"I…. would like to see Henry, though. When can I see him?"

Emma closed her eyes and bit her lip. "Neal, Henry doesn't remember… there was only enough memory potion for me."

Neal frowned. "Wait… So he still thinks I'm the jerk that abandoned him and his mother in jail?"

Emma huffed. "Yeah, but… he was so happy in New York." She grinned sadly. "Isn't that what you'd want for him?"

"No…no Emma this is wrong, on so many levels I don't even know where to start!" He sat up. "I know I have no right to come barging into your lives like that, but Henry and I had an actual relationship! I am his father, I do want him to know who I am!" Emma licked her lower lip and looked down. "You… you're planning to… go back to New York?"

Emma sighed and looked at him. "Neal, we were so happy there. It was like a dream, we had our own place, he had lots of friends, I had a great job, and…"

"And your family?"

"Well, I have Henry… and Lilly…"

"And Killian? You intend to leave him behind as well?"

Emma shook her head. "He'd come with me, I know he would."

"Yeah I completely believe he would too, Emma, but that doesn't make it right!" Neal pleaded. "Please… He's my son, you can't do this to me, I want him to know who I am."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Killian Jones ached terribly when Baelfire turned his back o him. He couldn't blame him, however. He had taken his mother from her family; yes, she had pleaded for it and he had fallen like a ton of cannon balls for her, but was that enough of an excuse to actually allow a woman to abandon her little boy? To start a centenary war against her husband who was, no less, the most powerful dark wizard in all the realms?

He reached into his pocket and placed the scrap with the drawing Bae had left behind on his desk. He drank himself to dry the tears and woke the next morning to find himself sore from sleeping upright, face on the desk, on top of a tall pile of parchments with unfinished math and arithmetic tasks.

And on top of all, the scrap of fabric with his likeness… all he had left of the boy who he had loved enough to raise him as his own.

Thank the lords of the seas for rum.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Did you manage to see where she is residing?" The green woman spoke to the flying monkey.

Screech screech.

"Oh, don't be testy. And you think that if you have a fair shot at it, you could get your hands on that babe without as much as scathing her skin?"

Screech screech.

"Oh, I didn't think so. Fine then. I'll do that myself. You try to keep the rest of them at bay when the time comes." She looked into the mirror at the image of envy. "I had thought the Snow and Charming little one would be the best choice, but… the product of true love doesn't necessarily have to come from them, does it? This little one? That's exactly what she is, even when that goofy mother of hers doesn't want to admit it." She chuckled. "And I have to say, the Captain IS quite a dish…"

Screech Screech.

"Oh, don't be jealous! "

Screech screech.

"No, I shan't be keeping their baby for myself, you silly nob! Once I take her essence, the rest f her will just… dissolve. She'll cease to exist as an actual flesh and blood child and I will have taken from her what I need…" She grinned wickedly. "Her innocence. The last ingredient I need to give myself the life I deserved." She turned around and hopped on her broom, zooming around the room as she headed for the window. "I'll be patrolling the town, my dear. You keep an eye on the little Jones combo… My sister will pay dearly… for having ever been born."


	11. The source of magic

"You and jello…" Neal grinned at the pirate that stood before him, balancing his body weight awkwardly from one heeled boot to the other, after placing a bowl of green lime jello on the tray before him.

He shrugged. "Well, given the odd taste and rather distasteful texture, I gather that the only reason for its existence in sanatories is that it must have some powerful medicinal properties."

"Naa, buddy, it's just a green, sweet blob." They both grinned an embarrassed pair of grins before Neal spoke again. "And you were put on babysitting duty? Emma really doesn't want me around, does she?"

The pirate shrugged. "She just thought it best for your own safety that you're not running around in the cold, trying to figure out the whereabouts of your father…"

The man in the bed nodded. "She knows me well."

"Aye…"

Neal raised his eyes to Killian. "How did it feel?"

"Beg pardon?" Killian grinned.

"Arriving in New York and finding out you're a dad." He chuckled and looked at the IV on his hand. "Emma has quite a way of surprising us, doesn't she?"

An honest cackle escaped Hook's lips. "Aye, that she does… what can I tell you that you don't already know, mate?"

"What it's like to know she loves you…"

Killian froze suddenly and felt himself grin. "I… don't quite think she's reached that point there, Bae…"

"Come on, Killian, you'd have to be either blind or really thick not to see it." Neal sighed. "Actually, I hesitate to say but I think she's had it bad for you for quite a while…"

The pirate shook his head. "What makes you say that?"

"Really?" Neal grinned. "Come on. She looks at you with an expression I remember… once… eleven years ago. She hasn't looked at me that way since, but…" He sighed. "…I know that look all too well."

Killian stared at the man before him with a mix of embarrassment, awe and very profound affection. "Well, if it's any consolation, I am rooting for you when you say you deserve to make Henry remember who you are, mate."

Neal smiled fully. "Ha… a changed man."

"You could say that."

"You did well, going to find her."

"You'd have done the same."

"And what does it feel like? You know, being a hero and a father after being a lone old pirate for so damn long…"

"Unfamiliar… but rather good as well." He tapped his finger on the tray. The jello wobbled. "And you? How's it like, being a villain?"

"Oh now I'm a villain?"

Killian shrugged. "You say you know your father is back. We all saw him die… and I may not be too knowledgeable of all things magical, mate, but I do know that the darkest of magic is required for such a fete, not to mention the darkest price one would have to pay." He shrugged. "But knowing you, I suspect you felt the means justified the end…"

Neal chuckled. "From one villain to another?"

"I know the feeling, is all."

Neal thought for a while before sighing and standing as he pulled the IV drop from his hand. "I have to go set things right… with Emma and my son." Killian took three steps back, blocking his way. "The question is…" Neal blurted. "Are you gonna get in my way?"

The pirate shrugged and raised his arms. "Well, I rather am in your way…"

Neal and Hook exchanged an ached stare, when suddenly, Killian threw his arms around his rival, giving him a hard hug.

Neal closed his eyes. "What the hell…?"

"This was long overdue…" Killian whispered as he pulled away. "I look at you and see a man. It's hard to remember that lovely lad I looked after, all those years back… But I do remember."

Neal nodded and grinned. "Yeah, I haven't forgotten."

Killian licked his lips. "We've been getting caught in a lot of nonsense over… A woman."

"Yeah, you gotta appreciate the irony, huh?"

"Indeed."

"In that case you know I have to do this, Killian…. You do know, right?" He touched Killian's shoulder. "You have a kid now… you would do the same thing…"

The pirate held the stare of the man before him before nodding and rolling his eyes to the floor. "Aye… aye I would." He looked over his shoulder. "You have ten minutes, Baelfire. After that, I'll inform Emma you escaped."

Neal smiled and gave the Pirate a friendly pat on his shoulder. "Thanks, man."

As he passed by Killian, he suddenly stopped. "Twenty two knots, one hundred and thirty five nautical miles, one hundred and twenty four latitude and forty eight longitude…"

Killian snapped his head to the man. "What?"

Neal turned around and smiled at Killian. "The answer to your equation. That's the exact measurement needed to safely navigate from vectors A and B to point C without falling into a maelstrom." He chuckled. "I had plenty of time in Neverland to figure it out. Memorized it. That's when I knew… I'd made a mistake. I judged you harshly… and you didn't deserve it. So you see… we all make poor choices in life. But through them, we also learn." He smiled steadily at the pirate. "Thanks to your wisdom, I was able to map the stars that got us all out of Neverland when we rescued Henry. I owe it all to you, Killian. Thank you." The pirate gulped audibly before Neal continued. "She's a princess, Hook. So is her daughter… and Henry is a great little guy. Treat them all the way they deserve, man, and don't let harm come their way. The gig is yours now, buddy; be the hero." He nodded at him, huffed and turned, walking with a firm step towards the exit.

Killian's gaze stared in the wake of Neal's departing path. He then paced back to a chair behind him and stumbled down on it, hiding his face in his hand and weeping softly. He had lived many years thinking that boy loathed him, hated him… had never forgiven him.

Everything was settled; they were at peace… And now, Killian somehow knew this was the last time he'd ever see Bae alive.

OOOOOOOOOOO

Just before Neal died, Rumplestiltskin and Baelfire split from being one, a powerful spell that had been keeping Neal both a prisoner and a living man. He was free now… and so was Rumple. Free to talk, at least, because apparently, the witch had gotten a hold of the dagger and had held him a prisoner, explaining why Neal had been missing.

"Zelena…" Rumple had hissed between teeth. "Zelena is the witch."

And why was Emma NOT surprised?

As they lowered the casket into the ground, Hook held Emma as she wept for the man, the hero that had saved the town by yielding his own life to disclose the identity and intentions of the Wicked Witch. Lilly cooed softly in the arms of her grandfather while Killian paced, teary-eyed, to be the first to shovel the rich, black earth on top of the casket. "I'm so sorry, Bae…" He whispered very much under his breath, before allowing the dirt to fall.

Another loved one lost, another number to his three hundred year tally.

He sat by the booth at the wake, discerning whether to guzzle back some rum or abstain from drinking altogether to hold Lilly. But the choice became plain and easy when he zeroed on Emma tossing darts into a bull's-eye board like they were laced with Dreamshade.

He stood and walked to her. "Perhaps… I ought to paint a bull's-eye on the wicked witch's back."

"Oh, she'll get much more than a dart when I find her." THROW.

He reached out and gently grabbed her wrist. "Swan, I know you're aching, as am I, but there are better ways to deal with Baelfire's death than letting anger overcome you."

"Let me guess… Rum?" she turned to him with a sad grin.

"Well, I've not had any for days, but…" He produced his flask and offered it to her. "Doesn't hurt."

She smiled and pulled his hand down. "For now I have no idea what to tell Henry without him thinking that I'm just making things up to make him feel better."

"Why don't you let me have a go? I can talk to the lad…"

"Y… you'd do that?" she pleaded. "I know you've been avoiding him for days and…"

"Emma, I knew Bae when he was Henry's age. I think he'd like to know what his father was like then. Not to mention…" He shrugged with a grin. "…I am "Eddie's twin brother". I might be able to reach him…" He looked to the floor. "The lad's lost two fathers in not enough time…"

Emma blinked her eyes lost in his. "I… can't thank you enough, Killian, but… why would you do this?"

He shrugged and touched her cheek with a single finger. "It's fairly obvious why… besides… It would make both he and I make peace with Bae's passing."

Emma continued to stare into his eyes as Killian recalled Bae's last wishes: 'The gig is yours… be the hero'. She smiled at him and suddenly hugged him hard, before pulling away and nodding, tears in her eyes.

"Ok…" She grinned. "Just be careful, Killian. Zelena's out there."

"I assure you Swan, no harm will come to him while he's in my charge."

Once Hook had taken Henry away, Emma sat with her parents and held her arms out to Snow. "Here, hand her over."

Snow smiled as she handed her granddaughter over to her mom. "She's an angel, Emma."

Emma nodded. "So is her dad."

David and Snow exchanged a quick glare and turned back to her.

"So are the two of you… something other than just friendly now?" David sighed.

Emma looked up at them and shrugged. "I don't… really know. We have a thing, but…"

"A 'thing'?" Snow replied with a sneer. "That's what you'll go with, a 'thing'?" She shook her head. "Look, I have to admit, Killian was never my number one choice for you, Emma, but it's pretty obvious that this is much more than just a thing."

"Neal just died, I don't think this is the right time to even talk about this." Emma snapped back.

"Emma…" David reached out for her. "There's a pretty powerful witch in town and god knows what the hell she's after. The fact that she presented herself to us as a midwife makes me think it's these little guys she is interested in." Emma gulped as her father went on talking. "The last thing you need right now is to deny what's in your own heart. Neal was a hero and a friend… but I think we all know that you and the pirate are far more connected than what you care to admit. We all need to be true to what we believe and what we feel… and to ourselves. But you're just denying it!"

"You're damn right!" She barked, tears in her eyes, as she stood up. "Because all it takes for me to lose them is to openly allow myself to feel. I have two dead guys I cared for in my little red book… that was all it took for them to die. You really think I want another red number in there?"

Lilly began to cry and Emma looked at her, trying to hush her, before turning to David once more. "I don't want anyone else to get hurt because of me… especially not… when he just came back."

"My deepest condolences!"

The cold voice made everyone turn in hateful silence to the woman that had just entered the wake. "I am so sorry I missed the burial, but I could never pass up a wake. Have I missed the speeches? Shall I make one? After all…" She wrinkled her nose. "It's all because of me, isn't it?"

She turned to the Charmings as they sneered angrily in her direction. David stood up and placed himself between Zelena and his pregnant wife. "Don't you dare come any closer, witch!"

Zelena laughed. "Oh, don't worry… 'prince'. I'm not here for your baby." She side grinned. "Not that one, anyway." She flicked her hand and Emma's head swooned back.

A collective gasp was heard and when Emma regained her balance, she noticed with horror that she no longer had Lilly in her arms.

Zelena had her.

"NO!" She lurched forward, only to be pushed back into the bar, clashing cups. Behind Zelena, stood Rumplestiltskin, looking glum.

"Let's keep the body count low, shall we, savior?" she smiled at Emma.

Out of nowhere, a blinding flash of light flew through the room and both Zelena and the Dark One covered their faces. David was fast enough to catch little Lilly before she hit the ground. When the light receded, Emma was standing, close-fisted, in front of Zelena. "Get your dirty fucking paws OFF MY DAUGHTER!"

Stunned and definitely surprised, Zelena took a step back. "How did you?"

Emma simply huffed and cradled Lilly's head, kissing it as she stepped back.

Regina walked in. "Why the hell are you here? There's not enough room in this town for two rulers."

"Well, since my cover is blown…" She paced gently. "I can finally pay a visit to my little sister."

"Sister?"

"Yes… Regina. YOU."

Everyone gasped again. "Regina, what is she talking about?" snow chimed.

"I have NO idea." The queen grinned coldly.

"Oh…" Zelena pouted. "Just… dig a little deeper… sis. You'll find I'm telling the truth." She turned to Emma again. "I may not take your little one today, Emma… but I will… soon."

"What the hell do you want with her?" Emma gnarled back.

"Justice." Zelena shrugged, smiling. "And I will have it, make no mistake."

And away she and a glum looking Rumple puffed behind a green cloud of smoke.

Emma fell to her knees, crying, holding her baby to her chest. "Lilly, oh god…" She wept as she kissed her little black head. "Shhh…"

Snow knelt beside Emma and gently placed her hands on her shoulders. "See, Emma? What you did there?"

"Wh… what did I do?"

"You used magic!" One of the dwarves quipped. "White magic!"

Emma looked at everyone. "What? No, I just stood up and…"

"Magic derives from emotion, Emma." Regina turned sharply to the savior on the floor. "Any emotion that you feel deeply will do. Your love for your daughter saved her."

"Love… is not a weakness, sweetie." Snow caressed Emma's hair. "It's strength. And you need it."

"Don't deny what you feel, Emma. Ever. Chances like those are worth taking."

She looked at her parents in turn and immediately she knew they were talking about killian.

Killian….

"Oh my god…" she looked panicked. "Henry… Killian!" She looked up alarmed. "They're out there!"

Just as she was about to set off running after her pirate and her boy, they came back, giggling. "Sorry, I'm sure I left it right he…"

Killian and Henry stared at the crowd around them, noticing something was terribly wrong.

"Mom? What's going on?"

Killian asked the same question with his gaze.

Emma ran to them, handed Lilly over to Killian and went down to hold Henry. Hard. "Mom, you're freaking me out!" she turned her head around. "I… they…"

"Someone just came in and robbed the café." Ruby chimed. "They had guns…"

Killian held on to his daughter as he looked over to David, who gave him a knowing look. Immediately, he raised an eyebrow, fully understanding the implications of what had just transpired in his absence. He felt himself involuntarily press Lilly closer against his own body.

OOOOOOOOOOOOO

"So, she technically HAD her in her arms…" Killian held his hand out.

"Yeah…" Emma sighed.

The pirate was always famous for being able to remain composed in view of most alarming situations… but not when it came to the safety of his own flesh and blood. He stood up with a loud huff and paced, looking flustered, rubbing his scruffy jaw, before turning around shouting. "And what the bloody hell are we supposed to do, against sorcery of this potency?"

Emma was startled by his outburst, but she knew she probably looked the same at Granny's.

"Calm down, Hook." David shouted at him.

"Calm down?" He hollered. "That bloody witch tried to steal my child, how can you ask me to calm down?" he turned and smashed a hole on the wall with the hook, his anger still escalated. "How are we to know she won't come and steal her when we're sleeping? She has the bloody Dark One's dagger!"

"But Emma defeated her!" Snow quipped.

Hook turned to the savior, panting. "Y… you did?" He swallowed and ran a hand through his hair. "Of course you did. You're the savior, you save, it's what you do…" He looked at each of them in turns. "And here I thought I had a good thing going, having a hook for a hand. What good is it now?"

He shook his head and stormed out.

The slam on the door made Emma flinch. Lilly cried in her arms.

She turned to look at her parents, who in exchange looked at each other before Snow nodded at her. Emma handed Lilly over and ran after Killian. She found him not too far, in fact, he was sitting on the third step up to the loft.

She sat by him with a sigh. "Ok… what was that?"

He shook his head, staring at the floor. "I apologize for my outburst, Swan…"

"Actually…" She nudged him with her shoulder. "It's kind of refreshing."

He looked at her and smirked. "Not my best trait, weakness."

"We're all weak. She managed to take Lilly clean from me."

"Aye… but then you got her back." He turned his face to her. "Do you know what Neal's final words to me were, Swan?" she shook her head and waited for him to talk. "He said, 'it's your gig Killian, don't let harm come their way… be the hero.'" He huffed angrily, shaking his head. "Some bloody hero… not even there to help his family…"

"Hey…" She placed a hand on his forearm. "You were helping… with Henry."

"I am to keep him safe as well, Swan. I made a promise." He nodded. "But whatever will I be able to do, should Zelena come back?" he shook his head and hung it. "Pan said it in Neverland. I'm a one handed man with a drinking problem…"

"Hey hey! Look at me!" She pulled his face to hers. "You don't, ok?"

"But Swan…"

"NO!" she snapped. "Bullshit, Killian, you DON'T put yourself down, not now!"

He swallowed and Emma swore she saw his eyes well. "What sort of hero can I be expected to become, love? I'm a bloody pirate, I can't even save my own daughter, how can I…?"

"You are one of the best fighters we have!" She insisted. "You have a passion that drove you through three hundred years! You survive even the worst of accidents, you are resilient, strong and you have a huge heart filled with unbelievable love which you yourself can't even begin to measure, that's how!" she shook her head. "You managed to come back to get me in New York, you found me, you made me remember, you are probably the most devoted guy I've ever met! Where do you come off, saying you're no good?" Killian started into her eyes as she grabbed his hand and held it tight. "Do you know why I was able to get Lilly back?"

"Your power, Swan." He grinned at her softly. "Don't you forget, I was there when Cora tried to take you heart… I saw the power within you. That's what makes you the savior. Nevertheless…" He sighed. "Should you be off trying to make this magic of yours work, and I remain watching over Lilly and the lad, what kind of shelter am I to be for them?"

She smiled and leaned forward, gently kissing him before pulling away.

He cleared his throat and swallowed. "And as much as I enjoyed this peculiar little demonstration, love, I fail to follow what you mean…"

"Cora said to me that love was weakness. It was out of love for Mary Margaret that she almost took my heart and I was able to push her away. It was out of my love for Lilly that I was able to retrieve her from Zelena…" She released his hand and touched his cheek. "My parents are right. I draw my magic from love, and I can't keep running from it… and you're a part of it."

He sat up straight. "What?"

She grinned. "Yep. That's it." She sighed deep and kept looking in his eyes. "I love you… Killian. You and everything you have done for me… for us. And I am going to use that… and so are you. And we will NOT let this bitch lay a hand on Henry or touch a single strand of hair of our daughter. She killed the father of my son, she's killed enough." She swallowed. "Are you with me?"

He felt his tongue gingerly feel his own teeth as a smile slowly arose on his lips, his hand grasping hers, hard. Neal had been right.

"Aye, savior. Let's finish her off." He whispered through a smile, before taking his hand to her hair with a firm grasp. "And we will do it together."

She smiled back. "That's the spirit, Captain."

They leaned in for a kiss and then, after slowly feeling each other's lips, he leaned his forehead against hers. "Do you mean that, Swan?"

"What, about loving you? Are you dense?" She laughed. "Do you?"

He chuckled. "With every ounce of truth I have in me…"

"Well, there's your answer. We need to remain together… as a family."

"Aye. Aye, that I can do…" He caressed her cheek with his thumb. "Heavens help me, Emma, I love you so much…" He smiled. "You bloody amazing lass…"

And slowly, they kissed again before standing up… and again after they stood… and again before they entered the loft again.

And through the stain glass window, a monkey who had been instructed to "keep an eye on the little Jones combo, had seen them, deeply in love, touching each other's lips with undeniable tenderness. Seemed that kissing was a big thing for the pair.

The witch would reward him handsomely for this.


	12. Love and loss

He'd done it. He'd really, really put his foot in it this time round. Big time. No going back.

Quite literally, no going back. And that's the reason why it bothered him so much.

Emma Swan had been gone from his life for nearly eight months now, and as he had promised, not a day had passed where he didn't think of her. So much in fact, that he had even rejected every single shot he'd had at bedding a decent looking female, from whores and wenches to courtesans and the occasional duchess. He did miss the feeling of skin to skin, the tickle of kisses lingering down his body, the clammy, sweaty breasts and the spicy scent of sex. He, of all people, had a libido that would have triggered any woman to insanity with a mere touch. But after having made love to Emma Swan, nothing in the universe would ever be able to satisfy him again. So he found it far more honorable (and secretly humiliating) to relieve himself on occasion, triggering himself by the mere image of her face beneath him as he made her reach her peeks, the rouge flush on her face and chest, the feel of her fingers around him, pulling and caressing him to a near climax and the sultry, satin glide of his entire self within her, so smooth, so perfect…. And afterwards, when he was done, he'd open his eyes to find himself biting on the pillow of an empty bed.

And then, he'd cry himself to sleep, whispering her name… "Emma… Emma…"

He hadn't found the Jolly Roger either so saving face before his men was quite a swindle. But then again, he was an expert swindler, so he pulled it off easily but at a great cost: His soul was dying. It had been easy to harden it once, but now it didn't seem to be working any more.

Damn this change.

So when opportunity arose to reclaim the Jolly Roger he jumped at it; except that, along the way, he had lied to a mermaid princess, sacrificed the lives of two men and turned his back on everything he had ethically learned from Emma.

And worse still… It hadn't worked. He still ached, deeply, terribly… and on top of it all he now carried a burden of guilt.

After three hundred years, the old ship could no longer work its magic on Captain Hook.

He continued to wallow for a few more months, wondering whether or not the sharks had been swift to end the life of Captain Blackbeard; he wondered if Ariel had ever found her prince and whether or not he'd been alve if she had; and he wondered if, perhaps, he had dishonored his name and the name of his late brother by once more turning his back on the Hero's journey in a desperate attempt to board up the massive hole in his heart that had been caused by losing his one true love forever.

So when the bird came and her name was written on a strip of fabric, together with the little flask Killian didn't even think twice about it.

The ship would go.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

It was raining cats and dogs; Mary Margaret and David had offered to take Henry for the night, but Emma felt it wiser for the boy to remain close to her, especially since she now knew Zelena was vulnerable to her magic.

As soon as he was asleep, Emma took the baby girl and tiptoed out of her room, up to Killian's loft; she'd be close enough to Henry if something arose, and in the event of anything, she cast a protection spell around her son's bed, before kissing his forehead gently.

A thunder clap rattled the town just before Emma was to tap on his door, and Lilly immediately screamed herself awake. Within a fraction of a second, Killian was violently opening the door, cutlass in hand and shirtless. He stopped cold and huffed. "Swan… word of warning the next time?"

She grinned. "I had no idea there would be thunder." She took the sword from him and exchanged it for his daughter, which he happily took. "Were you sleeping?"

"No." He sighed. "I can't help but wonder how many more days it'll be till Zelena makes her move now, darling." Lilly simmered down as Killian held her little body to his chest, pressing gentle kisses to her head as he rocked her from side to side. "She's been quiet for two weeks now."

"My dad told me…" Emma replied. "That when life gets really tough and everything looks terrible, you have to cherish the happy little moments in between." She smiled fully. "And… I'm looking at one right now, look at you, 'Pirate captain', holding a baby girl…"

"MY baby girl. That makes a world of difference." He smiled at her. "And why are you still standing in the hall, Swan?"

"Because you haven't asked me in, dummy."

"Well do I have to?" He licked his lip.

Emma huffed. "You really should be taxed for doing things like those… with your tongue and stuff…" She pushed past him into his room.

Lilly had quieted down and was once again sleeping. Killian placed her down on the couch by his bed and turned to pick up his shirt to cover her with it. He then looked at her with a smile. "She's so lovely…" He whispered.

"Yep. She is." Emma wrapped her hands around his waist, as they both looked down on their little sleeping princess.

"The thought of something happening to her Swan, I…" stuttered nervously.

"Don't. We won't let that happen." She kissed his shoulder.

He raised his arm and wrapped it around her shoulders as she turned her body fully to face his. He grinned. "So… why are you really here, Emma love?" he pulled her to him. She grinned, went on the tips of her feet and pecked at his lips gently.

"Do I need to explain, captain?"

"Well, rather so, first you fess up your feelings for me and then you make me wait for two weeks to suddenly come to give me the evidence of your affections? Bad form to tease a man so desperately in love, Swan." He clucked his tongue.

She ran a hand down his chest and when her fingers touched his nipple, he held his breath. "I will have made it worth your wait…"

"Is that so?" He softly licked his lips. "You'd better… I've waited a whole bloody lot."

She grinned and took a step back, stripping off her trench coat to reveal a specially purchased green satin baby doll, her body as shapely as he remembered it and her legs long and inciting beneath the fabric. His jaw was slack and his eyes were pretty much focused on her breasts.

"Oh… Swan…." He managed to muster, still gazing at her, perplex. "You are… a goddess…"

"I assure you, I'm a mere mortal." She paced to him. "Do… you like it?" She touched his arm.

His hand instantly rose to feel the soft fabric and Emma moaned gently at the feel of the satin between her skin and his fingers. Killian swallowed hard.

"I may have to rip it with the hook…" He said, raising his hand to where her left breast sat beneath the supple green garment. "I swear, Emma, you'll be the death of me…"

She smiled. "Killian…" she reached up and kissed his lips. He instantly responded, pulling her to his bed. She fell on top of him and stared into his eyes. "You know…"She whispered softly. "I will kick myself over what I'm about to say for the rest of my life, I know it…. But you are definitely the most gorgeous guy I've ever seen."

He grinned and chuckled. "You've good taste in fellows."

"I knew I'd regret it…" she grinned, slowly leaning in to savor his neck. Killian closed his eyes and gulped, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling the baby doll up to feel the skin on her back as she finally reached his lips, their tongues waltzing around as he felt the blood rush to the core of his body. He grunted and rolled over, pinning her down and toying with the stip of the nightgown on her shoulder. With one finger, he pulled it down and took his lips to taste the white, milky creature that was Emma Swan. She grinned and tussled his hair, smiling hard as he quite literally used his teeth together with his other hand; lacking a limb had never been sexier.

As soon as she had discarded the entire garment, Killian took a few seconds to regard her. He'd seen her before, but it was always like a first with him. He always smiled; too pleased with the woman that was now so willingly his. The rise and fall of her breasts as she breathed hard. He caressed her gently and slowly as she removed the brace for his hook. He slowly traced his finger down her navel, looking at her teasingly as he slowly reached down, lower and lower, until he was there, touching her.

Emma swallowed and Killian knew she had never in her life looked more deliciously beautiful; knowing that this new flush of redness was his doing made him swell with pride, and he playfully flicked his finger around, delighter in her every reaction, every bite of her lip, every little moan, every lick…

She was soon to explode when he stopped. Breathing hard and fast she turned her face to him. "Wh… why?"

"I just want to commit this image to my memory, that's all." He smiled before looking her in the eyes. "Emma Swan…. I love you more than words can or ever will say."

She chuckled. "That's good…" she reached down, undoing the clip of his pants and freeing him from the enclosure. "That's really good… because I love you too…"

He nodded. "And you have no clue how lovely it is to hear it, savior…" he whispered, still staring into her eyes as he managed to strip completely.

She grinned and reached down, feeling his arousal with one hand, and lovingly caressing his cheek with the other. He swallowed thick and closed his eyes. "Whoa…" He exhaled, his own hand returning into her most sensitive little spot. They touched each other, occasionally opening their eyes to enjoy the effect of what they were doing to each other.

He stopped her at some point; the effect she had on him was uncannily powerful and he wanted to save himself, the best of himself, for her. But he pressed on. She looked at him as he studied her with a grin, staring at what he was doing with his finger with child-like amusement, learning her secret switches, studying her every reaction to his touch, every variation… and when he tried slipping a finger and then two inside of her, Emma arched backwards, unable to control herself any further. It was quick, it was warm, and Killian was both stunned and amused.

Emma bit her lip, containing her scream. He remembered her to be a bit of a loud moaner, but with Lilly in the room, Emma was intentionally containing herself to allow her to sleep.

"Seems I really wound you up, didn't I?" He beamed proudly.

She looked at him, breathing hard. "Killian… please… "

He side grinned and nodded, slowly crawling on top of her and placing himself very gently between her legs. "As you wish, darling…"

She tensed up beautifully as he slid inside of her, stopping to look at her once he was entirely within her. He toyed with her hair and stared addoringy at her face while she stared back, holding gazes and locked in each others power.

"I want to remember you like this… forever." He whispered.

"Yes." She whispered back.

He smiled and touched her lips. "You are so bloody beautiful, my darling…"

"I'm all yours…"

"Say it…"

"I'm yours…"

"No… the other words, Emma.."

She giggled softly and reached both hands up, losing herself in his hair. "I love you, Killian."

He smiled. "Once more…"

"I love you."

He nodded, smiled and kissed her gently. "And I you, Emma… every day… every minute and every second… I love you so, so much… my savior…."

He started slowly, deliciously… an occasional grunt and moan escaping his lips when she breathed or tightened herself for him. They moved together, and together they moved the world. They stopped occasionally, exchanged a few smiling words, and he'd then continue perusing her soul with his body.

He made her reach her peak three times. And all three times, he stopped to smile at her and to tell her how wonderful, how marvelous she was to see, to touch and feel.

And how much he loved her.

This… was making love. REALLY making love. And when he was about to pull out (lest they have another little Lilly) she told him she was now wearing a special device to stop her from becoming pregnant… so he delighted in allowing himself to climax within her, moaning a little too loud, but still not enough to wake his little girl from her deep slumber. He thrust himself inside of Emma, moaning her name, his teeth pressed against her shoulder, one hand on her breast and his stump on her waist. Trembling and quivering as every single drop of his self emptied within her. After that, he remained still, so still, his head cradled by her hands against her chest, hearing her heart beat as it slowed down ever so gently. His hair was dripping with sweat and it took him no less than five minutes to fully regain his breath.

The storm outside continued to hit windows and walls, but no thunderclaps interrupted the evening. As they wound on, Emma found herself embraced by her man, his hand still toying with her hair, her hand resting on his chest.

"I missed this…" He whispered. "This is… heaven."

"Hmmm." She grinned and kissed the fuzzy pec beneath her cheek. "Can't deny it; so did I."

"Swan?"

"Yeah?"

"Tell me about yourself."

"What do you wan to know?"

"That lost little girl?"

"Oh, her." She sighed and nuzzled against him. "She's not lost any more."

He turned his face to her with a grin. "I'd love to see what you looked like then, Swan."

"Well, tall, lanky, thin… blonde… pretty much the same."

"You, are anything but lanky, my love."

"And you? What did little Killian Jones look like?"

He laughed softly. "Scrawny. A proper little weakling. No, my dear, my brother was the one with the looks."

"What? This, coming fro the self described "devilishly handsome" Captain Hook?" She propped her head up. "Wow, he must have been a sight."

"Aye, he was." He nodded. "He was tall, well built… the handsomest man you'd ever know." He gulped. "I do miss him bad at times."

She conformed to rubbing his chest.

A gentle silence took over. "Killian?" She broke it after a little while.

"Aye?"

"Where's the Jolly Roger?"

He laughed. "Emma, it took you all this time to wonder about the whereabouts of my ship?"

She shrugged. "I didn't stop to think. I was kind of zoned by your overall cuteness over Lilly."

He nodded. "The bird came, I read the message and I knew the curse was coming. So I ditched my crew, and took the Jolly Roger as far and as fast as I could to outrun it."

She looked up at him. "You've outrun a curse?"

He winked at her. "I'm a hell of a captain."

She laughed. "Well, modesty aside, what happened next?"

"Hmm." He nodded, his hand still twirling a strand of golden hair between his fingers. "Once I was far from the curse's purview I knew that the walls were down. It was possible to move between realms and all I needed to get to you then was a magic bean."

She felt the hair on his chest, softly brushing her palm as she caressed the spot where she could feel his heart pounding a perfect rhythm beneath his skin. "Those are a precious commodity, Killian. Not too easy to come by."

"Oh you'd be surprised… Piracy can lead you to all sorts of secret places where anything is available to you if you have something of value to trade..:"

After a short silence, Emma's eyes suddenly widened. She propped up and stared at him hard. "Wait…" she held her hand out. "What… No… no, you didn't…"

He shrugged. "I did. I needed a bean."

"Killian…."

"The Jolly Roger."

She stared at him and suddenly felt herself gasp, a sob caught in her throat and tears rolled down her face. "Killian!"

He sat up and held her with a smile. "And… I'd do it again, no questions asked."

She sobbed and felt her arms go around his neck. "But your ship… Your home!"

He caressed her hair. "Nonsense, Swan. You, Lilly and now Henry are my home. And besides…" he cleaned her tears off with the back of his hand. "…a mermaid said to me once that true love is worth a lot more than a few planks of wood and a sail. And I learned that one the hard way…" He swallowed. "That year without you, Swan, I suffered more than I had in the three hundred years that preceded your absence. And I made a lot of my old mistakes… but no matter how hard I tried to return to the man I used to be, I couldn't. The Jolly was of no solace to my ailing soul, love. Believe me, it was with no sullen heart that I made the trade… I was actually happier than you'd expect to have done it. So stop this foolery, love." He kissed her cheeks, still damp from her tears. "You are worth ten million Jolly Rogers, and even then I'd not trade you… not for all the treasures in this and every other realm." He smiled. "You gave me Lilly, darling, what else do I need?"

Emma heard him, word for word, and realized then that, no matter what, she'd never, ever let go. He was right… they were each other's home.

She smiled and fell into his embrace. "I really liked that ship…" She joked.

He laughed softly. "Silly woman…" He kissed her head.

Just then, Lilly whimpered.

Killian looked up and grinned. "She needs her mother, I believe…"

Emma nodded. "Yes."

Killian stood and took the little baby in his arms smiling. "Are you hungry, my darling?" He smiled, walking back and placing the baby in the middle of the bed, facing her mother. He lay on the other side and observed in silence as the baby fed, lying between them both.

How could the Jolly Roger ever be better than this?

OOOOOOOOOOO

The day Zelena managed to curse Killian's lips was probably one of the worst of his life. Using his love for the woman that had saved his life against him was a new kind of low; even in his most villainous phase, he wouldn't have wielded love as a painful weapon against anyone.

Even pirates have a code of ethics, he reasoned. This woman was the purest of evils… or wickedness.

Yes. She was wicked.

But he'd not lose her; he'd not chance this woman, this perfect, beautiful creature that had mothered him a child grow cold because of a witch's curse.

He parlayed… and spoke openly of his past's erring.

Henry was around, kept busy by David, while Killian ashamedly conferenced with his woman, her mother and her step-grandmother. Emma looked concerned at first, but when she reached for him and leaned on her shoulder, saying "I don't care what you did; I'm tired of living in the past", his heart was at ease.

When he spoke of the curse that had ensued as a consequence of his tainted past, Emma's face fell. "I can't… kiss you?"

He shook his head. "Alas, if you do, you will lose your power, darling. She knows what we all know, that you can defeat her with your magic." He shrugged. "And should you lose your magic… she would easily take Lilly away…"

"You'd be sitting ducks." Regina shook her head. "That bitch… using love to hurt people. Even I wouldn't go that low."

Snow side-grinned. "What about the apple?"

Regina was about to reply when Emma cut in. "Really? You guys are talking about this now?"

Killian sighed. "I think it best if you, Henry and the little one move in with your parents love, and I remain at the Inn." He shrugged sadly. "I'm too much of a liability."

"No." Emma was adamant. "I don't care, we said we'd face it as a family…"

"And that's what we'll do." Snow nodded with a grin, as she looked at the pirate, who returned a grin in gratitude.

Emma leaned on his shoulder. "Besides, there are so many other places where I could kiss you…"

"SWAN!"

"EMMA!"

And Emma giggled.

During that week, he had been blackmailed, cursed, put in the trunk of a car…

But his love remained strong. He was the luckiest man in the world.

Not being able to kiss his Swan, to feel her with his lips… that was horrid. And he didn't even want to think of what might happen if he kissed his Lilly. So even while Emma was understanding and supportive, it was a hellish week.

Emma, in the meanwhile, had taken magic classes from Regina

The day the monkeys attacked Henry and he at the boating house while he was trying to teach him to sail and tell him about his father, that was the day he'd had enough of the stupid curse. When the beasts flew in, aiming to collect the life of the boy in response to Killian's confession, he damn near got scratched himself. He had only two old pistols he now carried loaded, but alas, each one had but a single shot. Had it not been for Emma (bloody wonderful savior that she was), Henry would have been killed.

Zelena had tried to make a grab for the boy, but Emma easily stopped her by burning her with her energy.

So as long as henry didn't remember, he was vulnerable. That very same day, Emma confronted henry about the attack, and asked him to touch the book, to believe in her, to believe in magic…

And the truest believer returned to them… to Regina's embrace. And Killian could have sworn he had never at all seen the evil queen smile… or cry. Henry then turned to him and simply nodded assent. "You're Eddie, aren't you, captain?"

Hook nodded with a wry grin but was stunned to find the boy smiling broadly and shaking his head as he looked at his mom. "So my mom is dating Captain Hook… and my little sister is a little pirate! This is awesome!"

At least that much was a relief!

Now they had to figure out a way to undo the curse Zelena had cast on Killian's lips. So while Emma was with Regina trying to figure out a magic spell that would end the torment, Charming took Henry to actually teach him how to drive, which resulted in three mailboxes being damaged and the mayor having a fit.

Emma called Killian somewhere around six in the afternoon; he picked up the phone and told her he and Lilly had been reading a book about horses that had been lying around, and that he was running a bath for the both of them, so she wouldn't have to bathe the baby when she returned.

The night was a little chilly and Killian was humming around as he removed the hook from his brace. Lilly was already lying down, happy and naked, holding her little feet to her mouth as her father finished testing the temperature of the water. He too removed his clothing (save for his cotton skivvies, because "she was a little lady" after all") and he and his daughter shared the tub, merrily bathing.

"What's this, then, m'love?" He smiled as he produced a pink, duck shaped sponge. "Oh, what's this? Is this what mummy uses to clean you, my pet? Come on then, princess; let's get you cleaned. You'll smell so nice when I'm done with you, Lilly Jones…" he turned her around and grinned as he gently sponged the baby's body. Lilly simply enjoyed the warm water, the merry scent of the soap and bubbles and the chatty sound of her father's voice and company. "There we are… now… what to do about that little head of hair, I wonder? Aahhh!" He wiggled his eyebrows at her. "They have this magical potion in this realm, sweetheart… it's called shampoo. Now…" He gently collected water and toppled it on her head, making her blink as the water ran down her face. "…let's just put a little wee but of that there… and make it lather… there we go!" He smiled as he rubbed his daughter's head gently. "So, miss Jones, what will you be when you grow up, then? Princess or pirate, hmm?" he laughed and rubbed his nose playfully against his daughter's. "Gods, I love you! Do you love me back then? Eh? Do you?"

Lilly was laughing hysterically, which made Killian laugh as well. This, he knew, was the marrow of his life. What a treasure he'd stumbled upon when he returned for his Swan!

At seven fifteen, he dried and powdered his daughter while singing her a pirate song that was so unfit for a baby, she was terribly amused. "I knew it… you'll be a pirate girl!" he smiled and kissed her as he dressed her in her little pajamas. "Your mum will be pleased she doesn't have to do much else than feed you. I'd wager she's tired, sweet pea; she's a witch, your mum, you know? And she's brilliant… and beautiful… Just like you will be too, my little love."

As if she understood, Lilly grinned and started to nod off. Killian gently transported her to her bassinet (which by now she had nearly outgrown), and sang another song to her to ensure she'd be fast asleep. And a s soon as she was gone to the world, he dried up himself and wore the strange yet unbelievably comfortable "sweat pants" he'd gotten from David. Not at all a pirate's finest garb, but cozy enough for bedtime.

With any luck, he and would have some alone time… even if making love without kissing was like eating a sandwich without ham. Nonetheless, he still enjoyed the closeness and the love they gave each other.

She'd kiss him again. She'd find a way.

So he was on his way to the bathroom to unplug the tub and prepare the room for Emma's return, so she'd find a nice, clean bath for her to soak in.

When a sudden cloud of green smoke formed in the room and the dark one plus witch suddenly appeared in the room, Killian didn't even have time o stand up. With unexplainable force, the dark one submerged his face into the dirty water.

And not all the love and care he felt for his daughter helped him budge or breath under the water.

He could hear the little one cry… and it was the last thing he heard before darkness overtook him.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Emma had rushed back as quickly as she could, after she had called at eight and he hadn0t answered the phone.

The first indication that something was wrong came from the puddles of water that reached outside the door to her room. Pushing past the door, came the second vision… one that nearly made her topple over: Killian's body was slumped over the tub, his legs and bad arm hanging to the floor and his face under the water.

"Killian!" She screamed and ran to him, pulling him out.

His lips were purple and she had no idea how long he had been under… but he felt cold to the touch.

"Oh, no. No, no, please!" She shook him. "Hook, wake up, please! Killian" she caressed his cheek. "No, not you as well, don't you leave me! Don't!" She huffed nervously, thinking that this was Zelena's way of getting what she wanted; She would have to give him first aid… and upon contact, her magic would be lost. But then again, if she didn't, he'd die. "Killian, come back to me… please come back to me…"

No way he'd die.

"Son of a bitch…" she shook her head, knowing well it was likely that Zelena had won this round. She leaned in and propped his neck upward to clear his airway, before she pressed her lips against his, breathing life and hopefully, saving him. A halo of energy abandoned her body as she blew another breath into him, and before she was done, she knew her magic had been depleted.

Killian was not responding. "Killian… please, come back to me…" she whispered, caressing his hair and his cheek.

And seconds later, the gargling sound of water being coughed out brought the relief Emma needed.

He lay back down, coughing, gagging and gasping, as he took a hand to his lips. But then, realization: his eyes shot wide pen and they turned to Emma, registering fear and the deepest ache. "Emma… The witch! She took our Lilly… She took our baby girl! She's gone!" He felt tears sting his eyes as Emma paled and screamed at the top of her lungs.


	13. Slumber

**ANGST... WHAT WOULD FAN FICTION BE WITHOUT A LITTLE OF THAT SPICY ANGST? DULL, THAT'S WHAT. SO THERE'S ANGST HERE... BEWARE. YOU'VE BEEN WARNED.**

**CCC**

The Wicked witch of the West, the woman who supposedly melted with a bucket-full of water… "Oh, what a world, what a world…"

Emma tried hard to study about her, to strategize… but all she could think of was her baby daughter…. Was she well? Was she fed? What would happen to her? She could be cold. She could be ill…

She could even be… No, she wasn't. She would have felt it. All mothers know.

She shook her head and looked back to Killian who sat in the corner after finishing his third flask of rum in a day… otherwise, he was wasted. A real pity, especially in light of the fact that he had actually kicked the booze for two months, since Lilly arrived in his life.

Emma swallowed hard. She felt his burden. She didn't just feel it… she had made sure he had, in a bout of anger and despair, after Lilly had been taken and after she had almost lost him as well.

"_Why the hell didn't you at least try?"_

"_Because I didn't bloody have time! One second I was pulling the plug and the next I was bloody drowning! Try fighting the Dark One when you've no bloody magic of your own and you can't breathe, Swan!"_

"_You could have at least tried!"_

"_And what the hell makes you think I didn't? You weren't here!"_

"_What the hell is that supposed to mean?"_

"_Just that! I was alone with her, and it happened in an instant! Had you been here…"_

"_Yeah, had I been here, no one would have taken her at all! Had I been here, I would have done my job right and protected her, which is what you were supposed to do! She's gone because you failed, Jones! You had one job. ONE JOB!"_

"_Swan…"_

"_Oh… god… Killian, I'm sorry…" _

"_Forget it…"_

"_Killian, wait…"_

She had found him the next day, curled up on a bench by the dock, and had literally begged him to come home, to dry up from the cold, rainy night, to work with her… And as always, he did what she asked. But his heart was frozen to stone. Lilly was gone and the damage was done.

He knew she was sorry for her words, and time had proven to him that no matter how much time passed, he'd always forgive her for hurting him. But he also knew she had been right. And that hurt much deeper than what Emma Swan could have ever thrown his way. What good was he now, when he was apparently so unfit, so incapable of even saving his baby girl? Prince Charming had fought seven black knights with one arm while holding his daughter in the other. So what sort of man was he?

A useless coward… And also, no thanks to him, Emma was devoid of the only magic capable of defeating the woman who had stolen their most precious treasure.

God, he was a lump… on so many levels. He wept as he drank, and Emma's heart shrunk at the sight of her once proud pirate, now broken to shards.

Emma sighed and stood from the table, walking over to her boyfriend. "Hey…" She caressed his head. "You wanna share that flask or are you also gonna finish it on your own?"

He raised his sorrowful eyes to her. "The latter sounds appealing…"

"Killian, this has to stop. We have not heard from Zelena in two days… We have no idea where she's keeping Lilly, and…"

"No thanks to me, savior."

Emma closed her eyes and hated herself for having hurt him so deep. "Look…" She slid down next to him. "I was just so… angry, so desperate…"

"You think I wasn't, love?" He grinned a sad grin before taking another swig of rum. "It wasn't your words or your anger that ached my soul, Emma… It was the plain fact that they are all true. I'm no good now…"

"Killian, no…" She felt herself weep, leaning her head on his shoulder. "I was wrong, very wrong, you're so important…"

He grinned and leaned his head on hers. "I'm not." He chuckled sadly. "I could hear her screaming, Emma, as the witch took her from her little bassinet. But you were so right, love. It was my duty. I swore no harm would ever come to her or Henry… or you. And what has transpired?" He shook his head. "The lad got attacked by flying monkeys, you lost your magic in exchange for my sorry arse and Lilly…" His voice cracked and he simply stopped to imbibe more and try to drown his pain and his overwhelming grief. "I am so unfit to be at your side, Emma. I've failed you. I've failed you all…" He hung his head and heaved, breaking down completely.

Emma's heart was crushed. She leaned into him and held him. "You're killing me, Hook."

"See what I mean?"

"No, just… shut up, ok?" she started to sob. "Just stop! You are my life, my home…" She kissed his shoulder. "We will get Lilly back, Killian, please… don't you dare lose hope on me. Don't. Not you, of all people." She took the flask from his hand and gently placed the cork back on. He simply looked into her eyes and sighed as she spoke, tears silently sliding down his face. "I never should have allowed myself to say those things to you, because they're lies. There's nothing you could have done against the magic of Rumplestiltskin and Zelena, they're… really damn strong. Truth is… I was mad at myself because I wasn't here. Because I knew that if I had been there, she wouldn't have dared approach. She took advantage of the fact that you were alone, Killian. You didn't fail… I did." She caressed his cheek, his scruff feeling damp from his tears. "Here's where your magic comes in…"

He frowned. "But… I have none…"

She chuckled sadly, running her hand down his cheek. "No, you don't have any… you ARE magic."

He swallowed. "I don't follow…"

She nodded. "I drew my power from you. From what I felt for you. From your strength of spirit, your constant support… Killian, no one believes in me and my inner power like you do; no one encouraged me to find it, to use it and make it my own, like you did, all the time. You came back with that bean in your hand and ever since that day, you've been by my side." She held his face between her hands. "You remember what you said, back in Neverland? Were those wonderful words just that? When you said, "I've yet to see you fail", did you mean it? Because you know what, pirate?" She smiled through her tears. "I could really use that beautiful guy right now…"

Killian returned her gaze and slowly raised his hand, to touch her face. "D… do you really believe that?"

She tilted her head to the side. "Do you believe in me still?"

He grinned. "Every bloody second."

"Then I believe in you… and I believe in us, and what we have here."

Killian smiled fully and sighed, before looking down at the flask in Emma's hand. "I just… miss her excessively…"

She nodded. "I do too. We WILL get her home, Killian; we have to believe it."

He sighed and licked his lip. "Aye… aye, Swan." He caressed her head. "That's all we need, to believe it."

She sighed. "One good thing's come out of all of this…"

"And what might that be, darling?"

She leaned in with a grin. "I can kiss you again…"

Killian chuckled and found his hand twirling between the golden strands of her hair. "I do love you, Emma Swan."

They kissed intently and instantly they both felt themselves float into a mild oblivion… just float off and away and…

"S… Swan…" He grinned, mid kiss.

"Mhh…"

"Look down, love." He whispered into her lips.

When Emma did, she found that they really WERE floating. She gasped and stared, jaw slacked, at the floor that sat at least three feet beneath them, before turning her stunned expression to Killian. "What the…?"

"You got your magic back."

Slowly, they descended back down to the floor and Emma smiled broadly. "No…" she looked into his eyes, tears slowly drying up and hope returning to bot their hearts. "It never left. It was right here, with me, all the time."

"So, it is me?"

He nodded, smiling. "Yeah."

He felt himself sober up in a near instant and he smiled wide and long. "Very well, Swan. We have a daughter to retrieve." He stood up and held his hand to help her up, pulling her to him. "Let's go hunt that bastard witch and get our Lilly back, shall we?"

Emma nodded. "Backup?"

"The prince, the bandit, the queen, the pirate and the savior?"

"Yep."

"Yes indeed. Strategy meeting."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Do you know what this is?" Zelena smiled, showing a rather sizeable pin to the man he kept in a cage. "This hair pin contains the spell of a potion made by Regina. I retrieved it from her back in the enchanted Forest. She intended to use it on herself." She looked at the pin. "I suspect it has a sleeping potion. Always partial to melodrama…"

"And just what, might I ask, do you intend to do with it?" He asked.

"Well it's rather simple, my pet. I am no barbaric harlot. Retrieving the innocence from the little Jones girl will be painful both to her and to her mother… not that I care much about the Swan girl, since she can't very well hurt me now. But I feel for that little one. I really don't want her to suffer as she yields her life for my revenge." She turned and walked to the cage behind her. "You…" She spoke to Rumple. "Will do the honors."

Rumplestiltskin looked Zelena in the eye. "You are asking me to put the little girl through a sleeping curse so you can kill her off without her noticing?" He shook his head. "Like a dog… How very thoughtful of you."

Zelena giggled. "Yes. I am rather full of surprises, am I not? Besides…" She paced alongside the cage, dagger in her hand. "This is the child of your long-standing foe, the pirate, the man who took your wife and left your son without a mother. I would think that making her fall into a deep sleep and then seeing her die would at least provide a small modicum of pleasure to you. Consider it a gift."

"Mind my words, Zelena…" He gritted his teeth. "You may control the Dark One. But a deed as evil as the one that you are scheming will not go without pay, and hear me now when I say that the price of your actions… will be steep. The life of a child is magic far too precious to fiddle with it."

"Now it turns out Rumplestiltskin is a decent man with a heart…" she chuckled. "Might it have something to do with the little baby being the sister of your grandson? How sentimental. But, since you didn't even have the opportunity to attend your son's wake, I can't blame you for your emotional tide."

"Yes. It's all about family… Something you know nothing about."

Zelena swallowed hard and pressed her lips tight together before turning and leaving him to his tears and mourning. "Tomorrow we have the full moon. Tomorrow she dies… and tomorrow, I fulfill my plan! So eat up… dark one."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"So…. She's planning to open a time portal, to return in time, kill Snow's mother so OUR mother can become queen… and she would be the heir, without even a thought…" Regina sneered. "She likes complicated methods!"

"It does say here…" Belle nodded. "That babies are used for multiple purposes in magic, but that the extraction of innocence is the most wanted. " she looked at Emma. "Innocence is a very priced ingredient. It represents pureness and chastity, something black magic lacks entirely. "

Emma swallowed and felt herself tumble slightly into Killian's embrace.

"So, what happens to my granddaughter?" David huffed.

Belle sighed and turned a few pages of the book. "Well, when a baby is born, its essence is his or her innocence; extracting innocence from a child is quite like extracting their soul." She looked up at David. "She has Rumple's wit, so she does sort of have his brain. That fight you had with your fears in the woods, she took a piece of your courage…" she looked at Regina. "And she has your heart. All she needs is innocence… and I regret to say that that will cost the little girl her life."

Emma gasped and leaned into Killian, who simply held her and tried hard not to allow fear take over his own heart; bit he'd have been lying if he said he wasn't scared out of his mind. Emma could feel him shake.

"The hell! If she as much as tries, I'll rip her from limb to limb." Killian spoke through gritted teeth.

"And I'll help you with that, buddy." David added, getting a knowing nod from Killian.

Robin nodded. "So how do we confront this… sorceress?"

Regina turned her face to Emma. "The savior has magic…"

Emma sighed hard and stepped forward. "It'd better work. If we fail, we all die, basically…"

"You'd cease to exist." Killian sighed. "You, Henry, Lilly, and your mother…" he tilted his head to the queen. "…and quite possibly you as well, your majesty."

Regina stood up and looked at the book. "This portal can only open during a full moon. That's tomorrow." She looked at Emma. "Miss Swan, if you want to get our little girl back, we'd best start now."

Robin nodded. "You have my crossbow, milady; we shall get your child back, have no fear..."

He then turned to Regina and they exchanged a grin, and everyone else a knowing look.

Emma huffed. "Saving people is what I do. Now… where do I go for my daughter?"

David stepped forward. "Belle, do you have anything that belongs to Rumplestiltskn?"

"Wh…. Yes, of course." She shook her head. "But why…?"

"A tracking spell." Regina nodded and raised a brow at the prince. "Not bad for a shepherd boy!"

"Wherever the Dark One's at, so shall Zelena, and where Zelena is…" Killian added.

Emma nodded at him. "So shall our daughter."

Robin nodded. "Well, we have this day and this day alone. Tis a full moon tonight."

Emma pressed her lips together and squeezed Killian's hand. "I'm ready."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Rumplestiltskin stared at the little baby as she whimpered, teary-eyed, before him on the dinner table. Despite everything, Zelena had managed to at least keep her clean and fed; basically because she needed her to remain as healthy as possible… but no one said a damn thing about keeping her happy.

He swallowed deep and hard as Lilly whined and slowly broke into a full-wail cry. "Seeing her die would at least provide a small modicum of pleasure to you", she had said.

She was the baby of Killian Jones, Captain Hook… the man who had almost killed him in New York, who had chased him relentlessly and who had helped orphan Bae from his mother. Yes, it should be good to do away with his offspring.

But no, it did not.

Lilly's eyes, blue like the evening sky and looking terribly like the pirate Captain 's, looked into his own… and Rumple's own eyes welled with tears.

She was such a beautiful little darling thing… innocence and purity were qualities that his darkened existence often craved for and seeing the little Jones babe there, so helpless, wordlessly begging him not to deliver that pinprick that would make her fall into a deep slumber, hurt the very core of his heart.

But she had the dagger. "DO IT!" She shouted.

And sniffing sad, Mr. Gold caressed the little girl's head. "I'm sorry, dearie… I truly, truly am. Should your father come after me now, I shan't fight back. Darling, innocent little girl, I am so sorry…"

He grabbed her little hand, toyed with the little fingers…

Lilly screamed amidst her tears.

Until she fell silent after the needle touched her tiny index. Her face was lax, the epitome of the sleeping babe, serene, quiet… cursed.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Emma Swan was loading her gun with bullets…. And she suddenly heaved… hard. The very air left her lungs as she leaned her hands on her desk, anguish and fear and something else, something far more painful, registered in her face. "Lilly… no…" She whispered, panting.

Killian looked at Emma, and their eyes met and locked.

One thing could be said about them: They usually didn't need to verbalize what they had in their hearts. Killian had always read her like an open book… and just one look was enough for his hand to grip his cutlass hard and grit his teeth, gnarling a loud "NO!", as he ran for the door. Shaking and definitely feeling deeply anguished, Emma followed, making way with the team to put an end to Zelena's plan once and for all.

And praying she'd be wrong, that her perception was out of whack… that her little baby girl was safe.


	14. Heroes and Villains

Henry paced in every direction of the loft, nervous and agitated. This was his sister that was missing, his gorgeous, adorable baby sister.

And he was the older brother; it was practically a known fact that older brothers are supposed to defend their little sisters against bullies; and Zelena was a hell of a bully, if ever there was one.

Unable to pace herself, Snow tapped her fingers on the counter; she had shared in so many adventures, it was almost castrating for her to have to remain secluded. She looked up at henry, her mouth squished by her own fist as she leaned her head on it, elbow on table. "You'll make a hole, Henry…"

The boy stopped and looked at her, huffed and sat in front of her. "I'm sorry. I just… Mom is out there, Killian's out there, Gramps, my other mom…" He shook his head and slammed a frustrated fist on the table. "I'm getting tired of being the kid, grandma! That's my little sister! I should be out there helping!"

Snow sighed and smiled, reaching on top of the table to grab his hand. "I know how you feel. But the truth is, Henry, that right now, both you and I would hinder them and not help. Look at me, I'm practically the Goodyear Blimp!" Henry chuckled. "But, the time will come. You are the son of my daughter, a legitimate heir and the grandson of Rumplestiltskin." She crinkled her nose. "You're bound to have some magic in you, only right now, you haven't found it. Patience."

Henri sighed deep and nodded. "I'm just so scared… What will happen to Lilly?"

"I don't know." She shrugged quietly. "But we will win."

"How do you know?"

She tilted her head sideways. "Whatever happened to the truest believer?"

Henry shrugged. "He hesitates at times."

"And that's perfectly ok! You're human, you're entitled to have your moments!" She nodded. "but then, you pull yourself together, like Killian did."

"He faltered?" Henry frowned.

"Emma told me this morning that, when your sister was first taken, he was really upset because he hadn't been able to stop Zelena." She looked sadly to the floor. "I know how it feels to see your little baby leave your side without your wanting to, trust me." She then looked back into his eyes. "But your mom was there, and she reminded him how important it is for him to be strong, to fight back… and he's doing just that."

Henry nodded and smiled. "You're right grandma."

"Of course I am."

There was s brief silence.

"Grandma?"

"Yeah?"

"Is it weird that I actually really like Killian?"

Snow laughed and she stood up, walking to the kitchen to start on some cocoa. "Well, a few months ago I would have thought so, but not now. Why?"

He shrugged. "My mom. I have the memory of Eddie… the 'other' Killian. In it I see him with my mom, and they were so, so happy and so solid. I also have the memory of my mom and I coming back from the theater to see the stretcher being hoisted into the ambulance, with the face fully covered, and my mom just…. Breaking down." He looked at his grandma. "And I remember when Lilly was born and how happy we all were because she really looked like Eddie…"

"But that was a real memory."

"Yeah. But what I mean is, if Killian is my sister's dad, and he makes my mom so happy… I should really hate him right now, but I don't."

Snow frowned. "And why would you hate him?"

"Because…" Henry shook his head. "They're a family now."

"They?" Snow shook her head. "Henry! You're a part of that! I think Hook is pretty much aware that he has to own up to that, if he wants to be with your mom."

"That's exactly why I do like him." Henry nodded. "Because he is Eddie,a nd Eddie was probably the only dad I ever had, well, at least in THAT lifetime… and he was awesome. And if he was in MY memories just as much as he was in my mom's, I guess it means he's important to both of us."

Snow grinned. "So… Eddie was really cool?"

"Oh, yeah. He was a little league coach, what's not to like about a guy like that?"

"Yeah, your mom told us." She stirred the powder into the milk that had started to boil. "She said that he was almost pro, but that he had a handicap after an accident, so he now was a heck of a coach…"

Henry furrowed his brow and huffed. "Yeah… yeah of course!" he looked up at Snow. "He was driving, and he wanted to make a turn, but his direction lights failed, so he sort of… stuck his hand out…"

Snow shot her eyes up at him. "His… left hand…"

"And a motorbike crashed into his side! His left hand! He lost it! Why didn't I see it before?" Henry stood up smiling. "Grandma, Eddie REALLY was Hook!"

"You know what this means?" Snow paced hurriedly to Henry's side. "They're soul mates! Even in your own cursed memories, you had to put him to rest, it hurt so much leaving him!"

"And that means Lilly…"

"She's the product of true love! She's the next savior!" Snow nodded. She caressed Henry's head. "You know what? I think I now like that stupid pirate even more!"

"What's not to like about him? He's captain Hook!" He smiled excitedly. "He's a pirate's pirate, he has a ship of his own, he…"

"Oh, you didn't know him the first few days…" Snow shook her head, heading back to pour the cocoa. "He was an ass." She shrugged. "A really… cute ass, but an ass all the same. Oh!" she looked at Henry and shook her head playfully. "Don't ever tell David I said that."

Henry giggled.

Snow brought the two cups to the table and sprinkled cinnamon (lots of it) over Henry's and her cup. "To be honest, it was quite a shock, when we learned that your mom had had Lilly, and that Hook was her dad. But he was so… devoted to the baby, and he's always been like a rock for your mom… he adores her. I can't help but be really thrilled that they were so, so meant to be. Goes to show you never know where true love really lies." She reached for his arm and touched him. "Your father was a hero. We all loved him, and he will always be your father… But I think he would have approved of Killian and your mom." She winked at him. "I know I do. And I didn't before, believe me, but…" She shrugged. "The pirate's kind of… won me over."

"Yeah…" Henry smiled. "Me too."

He raised his cocoa cup and he and Snow toasted silently to family.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

By the time they reached the barn, an eerie, yellow glow was emanating from under the doors. Nighttime was falling and the sight of a full moon was visible over the valley treetops. Emma took her hand to her hip and drew her gun, and under her queue, everyone was at the ready: Regina produced a fireball, Killian and David held out their swords and Robin loaded his crossbow.

Regina used her other hand and blew the barn doors open.

Zelena was standing in the middle of a circle-shaped design carved on the floor. On the four cardinal points of the circle were the four needed relics she needed for the curse: A golden brain, manufactured by the Dark One, the hilt of David's sword, loaded with his courage, Regina's beating heart, and …

"Lilly!" Emma shouted.

From each relic, a different beam of energy was being drawn into the core of the circle: Intelligence, courage, emotion and innocence, all twirling in different colors, all swirling onto a small opening in the middle.

Her time portal.

"This stops now!" Regina shouted. "We won't let you get away with this!"

Zelena laughed. "And who's going to stop me, sis? You?" She raised a hand and Regina was suddenly hanging from the neck. "Didn't you already have enough?"

"I got your heart!" robin shouted at Regina and David joined him to retrieve her beating organ from the circle. Zelena huffed.

"A hand, my beautiful one?"

A flying monkey descended on them and they fought to keep it at bay.

"Emma, get Lilly, I'll keep the dark one busy…" Killian hissed.

"Are you sure?"

"we go way back, the crocodile and I…" he chucked. "There's only so much he can do to me. Go!"

Emma started to pace to where Lilly's beam of energy was being drawn from, where she lay in a rather rudimentary basket. Killian paced to Rumple. "No more water, mate, please. If you are to do away with me, try something a little less embarrassing for a sea captain than drowning…"

"Captain… get.. the.. dagger. Do as I tell you, and the Dark One will be at your command."

"Easier said than done."

"Find a way. Believe it or not, I do not want to hurt you, but I'll have to destroy you if you don't, I have no choice. Get the dagger!" And having said this, he gave Killian a single shove that threw him into a tall heap of straw.

Emma was close to reaching Lilly when Rumple turned to her and also shoved her away, her body smashing against the wooden planks of the wall.

"SWAN!" Hook shouted.

"Ugh, shit…." She moaned as she stood up. She turned her ached body to Zelena and her expression hardened. "That's it. This bitch is going down!"

The very foundation of the ground started to shake under her feet.

Meanwhile, David and Robin were taking turns in fighting the beast. "Take the heart!" David shouted. "I got this!"

Robin gave David a quick nod and, as the prince covered him, he retrieved Regina's heart, still beaming with energy. He turned his face to her and showed her what was in his hand.

Regina smiled and suddenly her hands began to glow white.

Killian kept his eyes fixed on Zelena's hand, waiting for the second she'd be caught unaware and he'd be able to make a move, either to retrieve the dagger or his daughter.

Zelena's smile slowly disappeared. "What? What are you doing?"

Regina grinned. "I'm changing." And she gave Zelena a single push that knocked her off her feet.

The magic ceased and the swirling vortex that had started to form closed immediately. Zelena stood up, astounded… and unaware that Killian Jones now held the dagger in his hand.

"HOW!?" She hollered.

She felt a gentle tap on her shoulder, and turned to find Emma Swan standing face to face with her. "Love. That's how." And she delivered an upper cut that had Zelena flying across the air, crashing against a beam before falling to the ground. She paced hurriedly to her. "You wanted a fight, bitch? You managed to piss me off, now DEAL WITH IT!"

A full magic duel then took place. Blinding lights, searing sounds… and Emma making full use of her abilities. Regina hated to admit it, but she was damn proud of the Swan girl.

Regina cast a green light that hit Emma square on the chest. She flew yards back onto another heap of hay, but stood up as swiftly as she had fallen to literally lasso Zelena by the fit and magically dragged her to where she stood. She then went down on the floor and grabbed her by her collar, ripping out the green stone medallion that decorated her neck. "Didn't anyone tell you large gems are tacky?" and she started to punch her in the face, roughly three times.

Zelena was out cold; the moment Emma had ripped the pendant from her, all her magic had fizzled.

They'd won.

"Emma!" Killian ran to her and handed her the dagger. She held him quickly and placed the dagger in her belt, before they bot ran to Lilly.

Robin embraced Regina and she swiftly placed her heart back into her chest, before turning to her new boyfriend with a searing kiss.

Emma reached the basket and crouched on the floor, smiling. "Lilly! Honey?"

No sooner had she reached her, her smile disappeared entirely. The little one was cold, motionless… breathless.

"N… no… no…" Emma began to tremble, with Killian also starting to feel his knees weaken.

The flying monkey turned back into Little John and joined Robin in his celebration of the witch's defeat, and David was smiling at them… when everyone heard the ached sudden wail that emanated from Emma's lips. "NO! NOO! LILLY!"

The vision that they witnessed ripped the very heart of them all: Emma had fallen to her knees, holding her baby girl…. And the little arm dangled down, lifeless. "NOO!"

Behind her, Killian's hand weakened and his sword fell to the floor. Not a second later, he did too. "No, no no no..." He whispered. He took his hand to Emma's shoulder and leaned his body on her, pulling her… pulling them to him, his heart crushed once more and his face contorted with grief. "Lilly... My sweet Lilly, no, no, baby, no..." In contrast to Killian's whispered pleas, Emma's loud cries were probably heard for miles around, her screaming ripping through the air like the haunting sound of a wounded animal screaming in the woods. "LILLY! LILLY!"OH GOD NO. NO! MY BABY! MY BABY!"

Regina felt her own eyes water and she took a hand to her lips. Despite the feud she had had with Emma in the past over Henry, she never would have wished the death of a baby daughter on anyone. And this would undo Emma completely. Robin held Regina as tears slowly fell down her cheeks.

Emma continued wailing, crying, leaning into her pirate; Killian was crying openly, his good arm cradling the limp baby together with Emma, while his other arm held the grieving mother of his first and only child.

David paced before them and also fell to his knees, tears silently running down his eyes; helplessness, the feeling of having been too late and of a price too steep, overtook his own heart. His daughter was crushed beyond all possible description, as was the once happy father… and his granddaughter, an innocent little girl, was gone.

"There may be hope for the babe yet…"

The sound of the crocodile's voice suddenly drew Killian's angry gaze. He stood like bolt lightning and shouted angrily as he jumped on Mr. Gold, knocking him to the floor. He held his right forearm to his neck, his eyes a powerful cobalt blue that seemed to throw equally blue sparks out of them, and he held his hook up in the air. "You… you and that witch… killed my child. You have destroyed my happiness once again, and my family; you have once more crushed the heart of the woman I love…. and for this… You… will not live to see another day!"

The fall of the hook was interrupted by David's sword. "Killian, don't!"

Hook turned his rabid face to the Prince. "Will you save him, after what he's done?" He blared.

"Didn't you hear what he said?" David shouted back. "He said your daughter may still live!"

Emma stopped her hollering and looked in the direction of the melee, still sniffing and teary, cradling her little girl as close to her breast as she could possibly do.

Killian panted angrily and turned from David to Rumple. "How?" he gnarled.

Rumple replied calmly. "None of this was my doing, pirate. Even the dark one knows when to draw a line. But Zelena had the dagger. What I did, was at her bidding." He crawled out from under Killian's furious grasp, and stood up, looking at the pirate. He reached into his pocket and produced the hairpin, showing it to Regina. "Recognize this, dearie?"

Regina frowned. "My… hair pin. I've been looking for that! Why do you…?"

"So, the curse is not yet broken and you do not recall. Wonderful." He huffed. "During your time in the forest, which you do not remember yet, you apparently had intended to put yourself to sleep, Regina. But Zelena interrupted you and took your pin. And kept it." He turned to the rest of the group and showed them the pin. "Zelena wanted no interruptions. So she had me prick the child with this…"

Regina's eyes widened. "Wait…. She's…?"

"Yes, the sleeping death." Rumple turned to Emma. "Your daughter was under the sleeping curse before we arrived. We all know how to break THAT curse now, don't we, dearie?" he raised a finger. "However… she did manage to start the magic for the portal. I do not know just how far ahead it went, this is magic beyond my own limits, so I have no idea just how much of the little one's innocence was used for this." He swallowed and turned his face to Killian, "So captain, you… try and wake your little one. And should you fail, should she indeed be gone from this world…" He nodded sadly. "I beg you: Put an end to my life, with the very hook that stands in the place where your hand would have been, had I not cut it off so many years back. I do not want to live with the burden of having ended such a young, perfect little life." He grinned sadly. "I can pay the price for the harm of an innocent soul."

Killian stood aghast, and ran directly to Emma, sliding back down to the floor. He looked at the mother of his child. "Darling?" He pleaded, teary eyed. "You're the savior…"

Emma sniffed and grinned at him, her eyes swollen and her nose reddened. "You… you try it, Killian."

"Why?"

"Because… should I fail… I will never forgive myself."

"And what makes you think I will forgive myself, should our lass not return to us?"

She smiled at him. "Because I will always be right here, with you." She sniffed and bit her lip. "Try it. Do it."

Killian exhaled; his face was smeared with dirt and his hair was hanging down his forehead. He reached with a trembling, ringed hand, his thumb caressing the cold little forehead above the lashy eyelids, shut tight over her precious little face. "My little darling…" he whispered, biting his lower lip and tears sliding down his eyes. "My Lilly… come back to us, love…"

Trembling, he leaned in, praying, hoping it would still be time. Emma still sobbed softly, holding their daughter up a little to reach her father's face.

He closed his eyes and whispered over her little head of black hair. "We love you, Lilly. We love you so very much…"

He softly and slowly pressed his lips to her hair and kissed her.

To both mother and father, the seconds passed like entire minutes.

Killian had not yet retrieved his lips from the baby's head and he was close to giving up hope, when a halo of energy blew his and Emma's hair as it expanded in a circular motion outwards, touching all who were present.

Memories flooded everyone's minds. The curse was broken.

Gasping, Killian pulled away and saw how the little hand that had been hanging limp a minute ago was slowly curling into a little ball of a fist. With a gasping gurgle, a cough and a sudden cry of life, Lilly drew breath and opened her teary eyes, her second primal scream in her short life as she came back from her deep, cold slumber.

"Lilly! LILLY!" Emma smiled and cried again.

"Yes! Yes!" Killian laughed and wept as he embraced both Emma and his daughter. He pressed his lips to Emma's head hard, laughing through tears. "Oh… Gods… yes…." He repeatedly laughed while he continued to kiss Emma and their daughter.

David laughed aloud and screamed a loud WHOO, echoed by Robin. Regina smiled and sighed.

Zelena stirred and sat up, looking at everyone with a disgusted sneer on her face. She was now powerless.

Hook raised his eyes to her. He took the dagger from Emma's belt and spoke to Rumple. "Do her in!"

"My pleasure…" Rumple sneered, raising a fiery hand.

Emma snatched the dagger back and shouted. "Stop!"

Rumplestiltskin halted and turned incredulous to Emma. "Why? Miss Swan, she killed my son!'"

Hook exhaled and blinked many times. "Darling, after what she put us through…"

"Have you learned nothing?" She whispered softly at him. "Killian… that man seeking to quench his anger with blood… is he still in control of Killian Jones?" She reached out and softly touched his dirty cheek. "You broke a curse, Hook. You saved her…. And everyone in this town. Zelena is powerless…"She sniffed. "But you are a hero now. Don't destroy it. Look…" She looked down at the little girl in her arms. She had stopped crying and although she still looked upset, her little eyes were turning from her mom to her dad. "For her. I know you are capable of change, you have proven it. Now keep it up." She smiled at him. "Remember… I believe in you…"

Killian sighed and looked at Lilly with a grin. She returned his gaze, her innocence still intact within the strong little heart. "Aye…" he sighed back. "Aye, Swan. You're right." He stood up and paced to the witch. "You don't deserve to live, Zelena… but you shall."

The witch's nose was turned uptight. "Oh… so you're a hero now, are you?"

Regina paced to her and smiled with satisfaction. "Today we are."

Remembering their little chat about villains and happy endings on the deck of the Jolly Roger, Hook and Regina exchanged a knowing grin.

He then turned to Rumple and paced to him slowly. "So?" Rumple huffed. "What'll it be, Captain?"

Killian stared at the imp in silence; for years he had seeked to destroy and obliterate the crocodile… and only minutes earlier, he would have ripped his very innards out with his bare hands. But a sudden image of a man with his son crossed his mind; he had crossed paths with Bae and had known of the Dark One. And a sudden understanding crossed his heart: He too, was about to kill in the name of his Lilly.

He wasn't all that different from the man before him, who had turned every table in search of his boy; and unlike him, he had been far luckier… his daughter lived; Bae did not.

Killian gulped hard as he held out his open hand to the Crocodile.

Rumplestiltskin started at Hook's peace offering before rolling his eyes up to the captain. "I… don't understand."

"But I finally do." Killian replied and actually grinned at the Dark One. "We've quarreled enough. We both want our peace, so…" he looked at his hand and sighed. "Bury the hatchet?"

Rumple looked at the captain and grinned back. "You really are willing to spare me… after what I did to Milah, to your daughter… to you?"

"I gather you have your won cross to bear." He shrugged. "I shan't carry it any further. So… this would be the part where gentlemen shake hands… Mr. Gold."

The dark one nodded. "Very well." He shook Hook's hand and a collective, satisfied murmur came from all around. "Do not expect me to attend your parties and social events though."

"I would despair if you did."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

It was nearly midnight when Emma and Killian tapped on the door of the loft.

Henry was the first to run to open, and he didn't even wait to ask questions to jump on his mom, hugging her hard. Emma held him. Pressing his head to her and kissing his hair.

"You're back!"

"Yes, kid…" She huffed though his hair. "We are…"

He turned to Killian who was holding the little baby girl, now sleeping a more restful, proper sleep after her ordeal. "Lilly? H… how is she?"

Killian nodded with a grin. "We had the medic of this town look at her. She's a tad dehydrated but she should be well once she eats and gets a proper night's sleep. " He looked at Henry. "It's late, lad, shouldn't you be asleep yourself?"

Henry looked up at Killian with an ear-to-ear grin and suddenly hugged him too. Killian grunted and turned a surprised stare at Emma before smiling and placing a single arm around the boy. Henry then pulled away and smiled at Killian. "My dad would be proud of you, Killian."

The captain frowned and looked down, visibly touched, as Emma grinned at him. "Thank you…" He whispered to the boy. "Now, get to bed lad. We'll tell you everything tomorrow morning."

Henry nodded and passed by Snow who had caught on, before turning around. "Hey Killian…"

"Aye?"

He shrugged. "That day we returned to Granny's after my dad's funeral, we never got to go sailing like you said we would… I take it Zelena was defeated, right?"

Emma nodded. "Yeah, kid, your grandfather's locking her up as we speak."

"Good! Then maybe we can actually take that sailing trip now, Hook?" He shook his head with a happy smile. "Call it a bonding trip, since you and my mom are sort of together now. Hm? I think my dad would agree with you teaching me and I have a funny feeling I'd be sort of good at the helm."

Killian laughed a loud and happy laugh, before biting his lip and looking at Henry. "Aye lad, of course. I'd be more than honored."

"Great! He ran back and kissed Lilly gently. "Night sis! Night mom, night Killian, night Grandma!" And off he ran to the top room.

Killian shook his head. "Still a little spitfire. Told you."

Emma walked to Snow and smiled as she hugged her.

"So? What happened?"

Emma sat down by the table. "Is that cocoa I smell?"

"It certainly smells good…" Killian nodded.

"I could use some cocoa…"

"And a bath… or no." Killian shook his head. "Perhaps a shower. I don't think I'd do very well in a bath now."

"Aw, come on!" Emma smiled. "Really?"

"You missed the last decent bath I had, love. Drowned in it." Killian grinned back with irony.

She raised an eyebrow. "And… if I went in with you, just to save you from drowning?"

"Oh…" He grinned back, his brow raised just like hers. "The package deal that comes with courting the savior, is it?"

"Wait, you two, please?" Snow sneered.

"It comes with a whole lot more…" Her voice dropped way down.

"Does it now? Hmmm…" His voice was husky and his eyes dark. "And just what would the price for such a deed be, my love?"

"GUYS?"

"I'll let you be the one to figure that out, captain…"

"Only too happy to do the math…"

"HOOK AND EMMA!" Snow shouted. "Will you just…. Not?"

They both snapped their faces to snow and giggled. "Oh…. Sorry, love. Didn't see you there…"

"Ugh, really, Killian?" She pointed at her own huge stomach. "You'd think I do occupy a little more space than that, wouldn't you?"

"Apologies, milady." He grinned and winked at Snow.

The princess sighed and turned to Emma. "So… what happened?"

"We won." Emma grinned.

Snow sighed and nodded with a happy smile. "A happy ending!" She turned to the pirate. "And how are you? How's Lilly?"

"Oh…" Killian smiled down at the sleeping girl in his arms. "She's a tough little lass."

Emma cut in. "Zelena put her under a sleeping curse…"

"No!" Snow looked aghast.

"Yeah, she figured she'd have an easier time using her soul for her stupid curse."

"My guess is she really didn't count on my wife being such a bloody brilliant woman." Killian smiled at Emma.

Both Emma and Snow snapped their heads at Killian. "Your wife?"

He closed his eyes and winced. "Oh, bloody hell, sorry, I mean… my… Lilly's mother! Aye, that's what I…"

"You said 'my wife'." Emma smiled.

Killian exhaled roughly and felt himself flush. _Damn you for blurting out your thoughts like a bumbling old fool, Jones, she'll run to the next realm and you'll be chasing after her for the next three years now_, he thought as he bit his lip. "Aye, I did, it just rather… feels that way, what with us and the babe, and Henry and…" He looked at Emma, who was just staring at him with a smile. He raised his eyebrows and tilted his head to the side. "Lest you'd like it to be so, Swan… would you like to?"

"Oh… OH!" Snow gasped and covered her mouth with one hand.

Emma felt herself laugh softly. "Are you asking or proposing, Captain?"

"Covering both bases with you, Swan."

"Really? We have a daughter together and you still feel you have to cover all the bases?"

He shrugged. "Given our history, can you blame me for being uncertain?"

Emma grinned and nodded. "In that case, my answers are yes and yes."

Now Snow had two hands over her mouth. "Oh, my god!"

Killian laughed. "Well then, Swan, as soon as we've had our proper night's rest and a decent washing, I might just visit your parents to properly ask for your hand and…"

"I AM RIGHT HERE!" Snow insisted.

Killian turned to her again. "Oh, sorry again, highness…" he scratched behind his ear. "I keep getting abashed by your youthful appearance."

"Well you can talk, after being alive for three hundred and something years…" Emma added.

"Three hundred and sixty seven, of which three hundred and thirty two don't bloody count because I was time-stilled in Neverland." He huffed and combed Lilly's hair with his hand. "Bloody waste of time…"

"Wait… you're thirty five Hook?" Snow frowned.

"Quite striking for my years, aren't I?" He raised his chin.

"Oh, god, there we go…" Emma rolled her eyes.

Snow closed her eyes and huffed. …and smiled. "Yeah. You wouldn't be Killian Jones if you weren't…." The pirate started to grin until Snow finished her sentence. "… if you weren't that damn arrogant pirate son of a bitch."

Emma snorted a laugh and Killian stared intently at Snow. He then grinned again. "Aye. And I insist that your daughter got her gumption from her mother…"

They both erupted into laughter and Emma grinned, stood and ran a hand through Hook's hair. "Come on. We'd better go. We need to put her to bed."

"Aye…"

"Wait! Why don't you guys stay here?" Snow stood. "We'd pull out the couch!"

Hook pressed his lips tight together. "Kind invitation, milady, but…" He raised his eyebrow at Emma. "I'd really like to finish the conversation your daughter and I were having a few minutes ago in a more… alluring setting."

"And you call Granny's B&B alluring?" Emma played.

"I call the sight of you in a green satin gown alluring, especially when you're under my…"

"OOOOKAY, good night! See you for breakfast, buy her a ring and we'll talk later." Snow huffed and disappeared into her room.

Emma shook her head at Hook. "You're an asshole." She smiled.

He chuckled. "Swan, your parent BEG to be teased."

"Go easy on them."

He took three steps towards her. "Very well, love. I won't bother them." He licked his lip. "But I do mean every word..:"

"Don't you think we've had enough agitation for a single day, Killian?"

His smile disappeared and a loving gaze met hers. "I was talking about espousing you, Swan."

"Well, I also meant it when I said yes."

He stood and handed the now sleeping baby to her. "Listen, love…" He sat beside her. "I know… you want to leave, I know you find your life in New York enticing and simple. And hear me: I'd go to the end of the world, any world, for you, and Lilly and your boy."

She frowned. "You'd… go to New York with me?"

He nodded and looked down. "Aye, I would go anywhere… but…" He raised his eyes to her. "I'd sooner talk you into remaining in Storybrooke."

"Killian, Lilly nerly died today! This is exactly the kind of thing that wouldn't happen there!"

"Swan, safety first nonsense is just that." He took her hand. "You just defeated the wicked witch. Why do you want to run? This is your home. I may be a tease, but I know your mother loves you, so does your father, and many, many other people here as well…"

Emma licked her lips and looked at the table. "We'll talk about it. I have to figure it out."

He looked at her and a sudden little quirk in his lip raised a corner grin. "No matter what you choose… I'd still make you my wife."

She squeezed his hand. "I know you would…" She raised her bloodied knuckles to her lips and kissed his hand. "Come on. Let's go back to Granny's and get some sleep."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Zelena paced in her cell, powerless and still smiling. She had expected Regina to finish off her plan, but the woman apparently had gone soft.

She knew, however, that Rumplestiltskin wouldn't. She had been smart to dematerialize the dagger from Emma's waist and place it within the Dark One's reach, just before she had lost her magic pendant.

Any good wizard or witch always had a plan b… and would be willing to die to make his or her plans come true. She'd see the portal open. She'd find a way to ruin Regina's happiness… and noticing her sudden affection for the thief had given her a desperate, last minute idea.

As planned, Rumple arrived, wielding his dagger; as expected, he had not told Belle the truth about himself and after he had promised not to hurt Zelena, he did just that and gave his now fiancée a fake dagger for her to believe that he was no longer in control.

And as soon as Zelena felt his dagger pierce her, a sudden feeling of unbridled joy filled her; she crumbled to the ground after turning into a clay statue… and her green essence went off to the portal she had already unlocked.

There, she went back, back in time, to assume the shape of someone she knew could ruin her sister's joy… and perhaps she could get her vengeance on that stupid Swan girl and her pirate. Half of the child's innocence had already been lost; there would be ways to make her lose the other part. And then, she'd personally deliver the flowers for them to throw into her grave.


	15. Written in History

Emma Swan.

That's what she chose to be… the Swans had given her back when she was three, basically because they figured she was damaged goods and besides, they had managed to conceive a child of their own, so… who needs a troubled little girl?

She was now fifteen and the oldest in the group home.

No one had wanted her. No one had wanted to want her. Why would anyone? Her own parents had left her on the roadside with nothing but a blanket covering her nude little body. The doctors had determined that she had been born a mere three hours before whoever gave her up left her there. If the woman who had carried her within her womb had had the coldness of heart to leave her, it probably meant that the Swans had been right, and she was no good.

So she kept the name. Emma Swan. So she'd never forget.

She was in the headmistress's room; she often went there whenever Mrs. Bailey was out. It was the only place where she could close the door and daydream, sit on her old quilted sofa, play with a real tea set and stand before a full-bodied mirror. Hiding had been her strategy ever since she realized that whenever she felt at odds, strange things would occur. Like the time where Mavis Jeffreys had stolen her ration of tomato soup (a favorite of hers), and she had somehow managed to knock the hot soup into her face, without even touching her. No one could blame her, really, she hadn't even touched Mavis; but when Linda Hughes called her Trailer Trash and immediately tripped over her own shoelace, hitting her head on the bathroom sink, things began to appear suspicious. Then one day she shouted at Miss Kelly for calling her stupid in front of the class and three light bulbs exploded.

Maybe that was another reason the Swans didn't want her: She was a bit of a weirdo.

But Mrs. Bailey saw her in a different light. She was kind to Emma, and never ceased to encourage her, telling her that one day she'd find a home, even if it meant she'd have to fight for it. She allowed Emma to enter the room, look into her old chest of memories and play with her clothing, alone but happy.

Happy was a word she had unfortunately associated with loneliness.

This time, she produced what looked like a white gown. She walked to the mirror and placed it over her own body; it was a gown with lots of frills and satin cuffs, reaching maybe her knees, with a band that she guessed reached the hipline, adorned with a single flower on one side.

"It was my grandmother's". Came Mrs. Bailey's voice. "It came with a tiny little veil, more like a… diadem of sorts, but… that was sort of lost in time. I think I do have in in here, somewhere…."

Emma smiled and turned back to the mirror. "It's a… wedding dress?"

"Yeah, it is. From 1928."

Emma chuckled. "It's old."

"It is, but look…" She took the dress from Emma and unbuttoned it. "It still looks great, it's in perfect shape. And if anyone ever wanted to marry in this, all we need is to have it dry-cleaned and voila!"

Emma sat next to Mrs. Bailey. "Why didn't you ever get married?"

"Who says I didn't?" she shrugged. "I just… never was able to have babies."

Emma blinked a couple of times before looking to the floor. "Is that why you work here?"

"It is, Emma." She mussed the girl's lovely blond lock behind her ear. "Peter and I always wanted a little girl, but… never could. He died about a month before I came to work here."

"I'm sorry."

"Oh, don't be. Things always happen for a reason. Had we had babies, had he not passed when he did, I wouldn't be here with you right now."

Emma looked at Mrs. Bailey with a smile. "So, you're different."

"How so, Emma?"

She shrugged. "Well, the teachers, they're all former… pupils." She sighed, trying hard to avoid the infamous "O" word. "You're not like them…. Like any of us."

"We are all the same, sweetheart." She smiled kindly. "We all come to this world under different circumstances and…"

"Get dumped in the highway, some of us."

"Emma, listen:" She took the young girl by the shoulders. "I will not justify what your mother did. Leaving such a little baby to her luck was just… wrong. But you reach an age where you sort of… realize that, whoever she was, she must have felt truly desperate and scared to do such a thing. I know, this doesn't work for you, but as you grow older, you will find yourself making a lot of desperate decisions." She caressed Emma's hair. "Whatever pain you are in, your mother's must have been double, to have to leave her baby like that. Pain, fear, and anguish… you don't know. Maybe she was really young, maybe she was forced to leave you, or maybe…"

"Maybe I freaked her out." She turned to Mrs. Bailey, standing up. "I freak people out. Strange things happen when I'm around."

"Emma those are just odd coincidences."

"What if… I'm a witch? What if I'm one of those babies that came out from a satanic ritual or something?"

Mrs. Bailey laughed. "You're a smart girl, I know you really don't believe that! Look…" She stood and grabbed Emma's hands, walking with her to the mirror. "You're a beauty, you're intelligent, you have good grades… And if you have a little quirk that makes things happen, like you say, well, I say that that just makes you a hell of a lot more interesting, that's all."

Emma somehow managed to feel herself smile a little.

"Tell you what… try the dress on."

"Y… your grandma's wedding dress?"

"Yeah, go on, put it on!"

Emma laughed as she went behind the Chinese decorated screen to change; the dress still hung a little, but Emma loved the feel and old smell of the garment. She came back out and Mrs. Bailey smiled. "My, my… Emma!" She clasped her hands together. "You're starting to shape up to be one hell of a beautiful woman." She sighed. "One day you'll be a lot fuller at the top and your hips and you'll look splendid in this!"

Emma grinned back. "Oh, I don't think I'll ever get married…"

"Why?"

Emma's face fell. "Who would ever want to marry me?"

"Oh, Emma…" She stood up and hugged the girl. "There will be a man who will see your inner beauty before he even realizes how amazingly beautiful you are on the outside. There is always one. Not everyone finds him because sometimes, we're so enthralled with our own lives, our obligations… we sort of let it pass, but I'm sure you won't. And I know you'll be one of the lucky few who will know him the minute your eyes meet." Emma grinned at the woman, trying not to let tears well up in her eyes. "Oh, I think I remember where the diadem is! Hold on!" She went through three boxes when she finally produced a little cap that was short veiled and incrusted with some old, squashed feathers. "It could also use a little maintenance, but hey, let's put it on…" She placed it on Emma's head and the girl smiled as she looked into the mirror. "Remember this, Emma Swan: This, will be you in a few years… and you will be beautiful, fortunate and very, very loved. Don't you forget it. Every little girl is a princess."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

She looked at him, still sleeping.

The whole fight had taken quite a toll on everyone, but he still looked peaceful and beautiful as he slept by her side. The sun hadn't quite come up yet but a mild yellow glow was visible in the horizon. She had somehow gotten used to sleeping in that crammed little bed of his, but she knew by now that she would never be able to sleep decently anywhere without the feel of his body next to hers, no matter how cramped. Even Lilly fit in the bed.

Nothing that couldn't be fixed with a little squishing. Squishing was nice when one was in love.

She was out of bed early to feed her. She had risen as if nothing had happened the day before, looking fresh and happy and smiling her usual baby smiles. If anything, she had gained a little bit of weight since they had arrived in Storybrooke, and she had certainly grown at least a couple of inches.

As she held her to her breast, Emma continued to stare at Killian, who seemed immobile and only breathed deeply and calmly, sighing occasionally and stirring slightly whenever he did.

"OWW!" Emma suddenly wailed and involuntarily pulled away from Lilly, who looked startled at having her lunch so abruptly interrupted. Emma looked at her and saw two little incisive teeth peeking on her upper gum. "When did those start to pop out, baby?" She grinned at her daughter who had started to whine. She then looked at her own breast. "You guys, we're in for a rough ride from now until. Ugh…." The then allowed Lilly to continue feeding.

"Rum…" Killian moaned.

Emma turned to find him, face pressed to the pillow, one eye partially open and looking at his daughter as she suckled. Emma winced again. "Jesus!" She turned to Killian. "How long have you been awake?"

"Your OW just woke me…"

"Sorry."

"It's ok, Swan." He grinned. "Rum."

"Don't you think it's a little too early for that?"

Killian huffed and propped himself up on the pillow, and Emma had to smile at how beautifully terrible and sexy he looked, a pillow mark on his right cheek and his hair standing all over the place like some funny cactus plant. "Not for me, love… for Lilly."

"Rum?" She raised both eyebrows. "What are you…?"

"Even Zelena knew of that secret." He yawned. "You take some rum, dip your finger in it and rub it into her gums. Should ease the pain of the process…"

"And who is going to ease MY pain, I ask you?" She giggled. "I mean, I'm supposed to feed her for the next couple of months still and, Oh OWWW, LILLY!"

He laughed and sat up, kissing Emma on the shoulder before looking down at his daughter. "Go easy on your mum, darling. Those are not just yours to nibble on, don't want them damaged too badly..."

Emma rolled her eyes over to him with a smirk. "SO glad she doesn't understand what the heck you just said, Killian; I'd have to have her psychoanalyzed for years for this."

"Psycho-what?" He sneered.

Emma smiled at him. "Ok. You're an avid reader, I'm sure you'll totally love the work of Sigmund Freud and Melanie Klein. Remind me to ask Hopper for a copy of his full work for you to understand, just… don't believe everything."

He smiled at Emma and sighed. "I suppose that, now with the witch gone, I might actually have some time to indulge in a proper reading." He kissed her cheek and stood up. "Best start the day."

"Aw come on!" Emma whined. "The sun's not even out yet, Hook!"

"Have you ever heard the metaphor, "the early bird gets the best worm", love?" He grinned as he slipped into his leather pants.

"Yeah. And that's really cool. If you're a bird."

He laughed.

"Killian, come on, stay in bed with me… Just a couple hours more?"

The captain stood straight and huffed. And Lilly notoriously pulled hard. "OWWW!"

He winced. "That hurts even to look at." He turned to Emma. "Will you make it worth my while?"

"When do I not?"

He nodded. "You make a fine point, savior. Very well…" he removed his pants again and skipped into bed just as Emma pulled Lilly away. The baby looked pleased with herself and easily drifted back into sleep when she was placed in her bassinette. Emma sighed and returned to bed, cuddling up to Killian. Who lifted the blanket up for her. "That really hurts…"

He chuckled as he embraced her. "I'm sure it does."

"Are those tender?"

"You can't even begin to imagine…"

"I can, sweetheart." He shrugged. "Fellows also have rather sensitive nipples as well. I rather admire you, for doing this…"

She looked up at him. "Really, why do men have nipples? Seriously, you don't need them, you don't feed babies, you just… have them there."

"Swan, for the love of…" He laughed. "Why on earth are you asking me such a daft question? I honestly don't know."

She looked at him. "I swear, mine are devastated."

"Alas…" He sighed.

"And yours…" She gently touched his little bud amidst the hair of his chest. "Look at them, in perfect shape and they don't even have a proper use… It's not fair." She played with it with her finger and Killian gulped.

"Are, erhm…. You quite sure of that, my love? That they have no… proper use?"

"Really… what are they there for?" She looked up into his eyes, lustfully, before kissing her way down, and gently teasing it with a single lick before giving it a moderately decent little suckle. Killian swallowed hard and leaned his head back into the pillow with a grin, inhaling deeply and licking the inside of his upper teeth. Emma stopped and looked at him. "There. Nothing. Not even perking up."

He laughed. "Well, those might not perk up, darling, but…. Something else is."

"Oh… so they're like… a switch?" she crawled up his chest to his lips.

"You could say that."

"And… am I flipping that… switch, captain?" She whispered.

"Like an expert."

"So… they DO serve a purpose."

"I suppose so…" He leaned up to touch her lips with his.

Emma fell on him completely, her hair hanging on either side, as Killian's handless limb wrapped around her waist, pulling her to his body, his other hand gently caressing the rounded side of her breasts, hoping not to touch her sensitive parts, even if he desperately wanted to. She grinned when she indeed felt the parts that had cleverly "perked up" press against her thigh and smiled. "Ahoy there, skipper…" She smiled.

"Aye aye, Captain…" he replied.

She frowned. "Aren't YOU the Captain?"

"Not with you, love. You're captaining my life."

She smiled and caressed his hair, looking into his deep, blue eyes. "And I tied you up in that beanstalk."

"Aye… and I locked you up in a cage. We're even."

"You want to know a secret?"

Killian caressed her face. "Of course…"

She sighed and rolled off of him, leaning into his side. "There was a reason I chained you up there…"

"You didn't trust me."

"That's not it. I trusted you." She bit her lip. "And… that's why I chained you."

Killian frowned. "I'm afraid I don't quite follow…"

Emma sighed. "From the moment I met you, there was something about you that just felt right. You said some things as we climbed up that beanstalk, and you cured my hand with the rum and then I saw how you defied the giant, and I just thought, 'wow, he's got guts!'… I was impressed… Then later you were about to trip on that booby trap so I pulled you, and you held me and I… God, I hate to admit it but it felt so good and I just… really liked you." She chuckled. "And that was scary, because… all my life, every time something good comes my way, and I feel happy… I somehow wind up getting hurt. So, from a very young age, I convinced myself that happiness is being alone, staying away from love… because it will eventually hurt you. Then when that thing happened with Neal, and I was in jail…. I thought it was life showing me that I was right. That alone is better than 'in love'…" She looked up into his eyes. "I never forgot the look in your eyes, how hopeful and pleased you looked when I helped you out from underneath the rubble, and you held your hand out to me… and the look on your face when I… put that shackle on you. I thought about that for months. So deep down, when I heard you were in town… I just had to see. That's when I found you on the side of the road with three broken ribs and with Gold trying to strangle you with his cane, so … I had to protect you." She laughed. "So I shackled you again!" She caressed his cheek. "I chained you at the beanstalk because… if you had followed me… I would have fallen for you much sooner than what I did, Killian. And I was terrified." Killian sighed deep and Emma touched his face. "But I'm not now. Not anymore. I'm sorry."

He looked legitimately touched. "Oh, Swan…" He whispered. "I rather figured that out a while ago, but hearing you say it… well…" He leaned down and kissed her neck. "I am blessed to have won your heart. I truly am."

She smiled, welcoming the feeling of his lips on her skin. "I love you..." She whispered.

He propped up on his elbows and smiled. "And I love you… matter of fact… let me show you just how much…"

She was finally loved and wanted. Magic and all. After all, she was sleeping with Captain Hook AND raising a child with him, her parents were Snow White and Prince Charming and she had just defeated the Wicked Witch of the West. She was completely surrounded by weirdoes and it no longer felt strange to be one. This was definitely closer to home than anything, and she slowly understood why she had never found her true home. Maybe she wouldn't HAVE to run back to New York… still…

Making love as the sun rose had never felt so damn good… until Killian Jones.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"And what is the proper form of behavior for a Gentleman and a Sailor, when a lady is on board?" The professor approached the young sailor, still clad in dark navy clothes. "Sailor Williams?"

The young sailor's eyes shot straight ahead, looking at a blank point in the distance before he replied. "Sir! You remove your headwear and bow, before you approach the lady and offer your own accommodations and meals, should the journey be too long…"

"And your company in the bunks to keep her warm at nights…" Came another voice.

Grunts of laughter were heard as Professor Commodore Carrigan paced to the very obvious source of the joke. "The younger Jones boy… why am I not surprised?" He scolded. "Step forward, sailor!"

Killian took two steps forward. "Aye sir…"

The Commodore approached his face. "And I gather you feel that that was amusing, Jones…" He hissed.

"It rather was, sir, yes, I do feel so." He replied with a grin.

More amused grunts. Liam, lined up on the row behind his brother, bit his lower lip. That brother of his…

"You, master Killian, are unruly, undisciplined and rogue. You have no regard for etiquette, you can't hoist a sail to save your life and were it not for your uncanny mathematical abilities and your skill for mapping the stars, I'd have seen to your displacement from this academy a long time ago, but I fear that being ostracized might only make a pirate out of you, and heavens know we need no more of those in this realm."

"Runs in my family, I fear, sir." Killian nodded.

Liam sighed and grinned as he shook his head. Indeed, that little brother of his…

Commodore Carrigan huffed. "Jones, you will get three lashes and a day without meals for a whole day, for your cheek." He stepped loser to his face. "Hopefully that will teach you to keep that big gob of yours shut when it comes to replicating a superior officer, which you fail to recall, have all authority over your pathetic little arse… Your future as a naval officer is uncertain, should you not mind your mouth you'll end up a boozing buccaneer with no future, drinking rum and…"

"Well, at least he won't be cold nights, sir!"

More laughing grunts as the Commodore turned to Liam. "I should have thought the other Jones would jump in to save his little brother. Tell me, sailor Jones…" He walked to Liam. "What does it feel like, being the sons of an infamous pirate, the most infamous of all? Hmm? Shame? Anger?" Both Liam and Killian lost their smiles at that, but not their military stance. "Indeed, it does run in your family, I fear. Alas… It is my duty not to encourage this insubordinate attitude, but to mend it, so as to prevent either from you from becoming that shameful figure of a father you were unfortunately raised by." He paced away. "Three lashes for you as well, Liam Jones! And nonetheless, you WILL attend the academy ball and you will NOT shame it by philandering with the courtiers that will do your scrawny arses the favor of dancing with you."

Three (or six) lashes later, the two brothers returned to their quarters at the naval academy. Both Liam and Killian Jones were well loved by their class mates for their wit, their humor and their disregard for most strict rules; they were, however, the most apt at sailing practices: Liam was strong, tall, and commanded respect, had all the traits of a leader and was certainly looked up to by most other classmates, while Killian was intelligent beyond his years, resourceful, strong willed and an excellent navigator.

They'd make a hell of a team; the problem was stirring them both away from the path his father, the famous Davy Jones, had taken.

"Do you believe that was worth it, brother?" Killian whined as he lay down on his cot.

"Well…" Liam grunted, in equal pain. "The lads still think highly of us, so I'd say aye to that query." He turned his head to his brother. "I must say, we do need to shape up, Killy. The ball is tomorrow and we're both ached by the whip."

"What is there to ladies that we don't already know, Liam love?" Killian smiled. "We've been out enough…"

"Bar wenches and street Phillies are certainly NOT the same thing as proper ladies, brother."

"Certainly, but how hard can wooing one be?"

"Whoever said a word about wooing, Killian?" he chuckled. "These are just courtiers asked to escort us all for the duration of the ball, we're not courting for marriage."

Killian turned with a wince, facing his brother. "Do you ever plan to wed, Liam?"

Liam sighed. "Should the occasion arise, why, yes."

"Who?"

Liam frowned. "How should I know, Killian?"

The younger Jones sat up and hissed in pain before looking at his brother. "I plan to wed…"

"You can't even tie your shoelaces…" Liam joked.

"What garbage. I can woo."

"Shagging is one thing, Killian, courting a lady is quite another." Liam laughed.

Liam laughed back. "And you're just jealous because your younger brother had carnal love before you did."

"Alas, I am far better looking than you, Killian."

"That's debatable!"

Killian suddenly forgot his pain and he scuffled with his older brother for a few minutes before they both remembered they had bloody backs. As they settled down, they continued conversing.

"So, you little arse…" Liam sighed as he swabbed his younger brother's back with a dash of stolen rum. "Who and how do you intend to wed?"

Killian winced at the pain of the alcohol entering through his gashes. "I do have a mental image…"

"Pray tell."

"For starters, she won't be a dull, embroidering lass." He smiled. "She will be tough."

"She'll have to be, to put up with you."

"She will have the face of an angel and the heart of a lion… she will best me in everything I do. She will be hard to win over, and I will have to fight all sorts of oddities to be at her side." He closed his eyes and continued to describe her, the woman of his dreams. "She will make me weep and rejoice… She will however, be kind when she has to: A proper daughter, a diligent mother, and she will know her ways in bed, much as I will know my own. And she will love me…" He sighed. "…even if she will never do so more than I ever will."

Liam laughed hard. "And, she will have hair golden like the sun and eyes greener than the fields of our lands, lips red, skin creamy and a bosom like a goddess of the sea, am I correct?" Liam chuckled. "I know your type, little brother…"

"YOUNGER brother." He turned to Liam. "And yes. That would be her."

Liam laughed. "You're practically asking for an angel, Killian."

"Aye, I know of it. I know I'm not the most deserving, but I know I shall find her…"

"You're a sentimental, romantic bastard."

"Aye, what of it?"

"It will never happen, love. You'll find a woman who is decent enough and wed her, you'll see…"

Killian turned and pulled his shirt down with a mocking grin. "I'll be a captain of my own vessel as well."

Liam laughed aloud. "Sure you will…"

A week later, the ball took place without incident… except for the incident of the two Jones brothers getting caught humping their willing dates behind the armory and getting locked up in the academy brig for a week.

With another lashing.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"So…"

"So…"

"Here we are…"

"Indeed…"

David and Snow sat on the table across from Killian. "How are you this morning?"

Killian sighed. "Well, considering the struggle we all went through yesterday and the fact that for a few brief moments I felt the overwhelming anguish and ache of believing my daughter was dead, I am doing surprisingly well." He sighed. "Thank all gods for Emma."

Snow cleared her throat and David turned to her to see her scratch the edge of her hair. "What, have I missed something?"

"Not something you'd want to know about in detail, David, love…" Killian choked a giggle… and was stunned to find Snow was stifling one herself.

"You didn't…" David straightened up.

"Do you really think Lilly was brought to Emma by the stork, David?" Snow looked at her husband. "We all know that's not how this works…"

The prince swallowed a large gulp of saliva and averted his gaze to the table while Killian and Snow fought to keep their laughter inside their lips. "Fine. Ok. Don't wanna know. Why the hell are you here?"

Killian finally nodded with a smile and reached into his pocket. "While Emma is out with Lilly doing some grocery shopping, I came to show you this… for your approval of it…" He placed a beautiful silver ring with a huge blue stone in the middle. When David's jaw fell open and he looked at Killian, the pirate's smile had disappeared. "…And your blessing."

Snow was also aghast. "I… was joking when I said, bring the ring…"

Killian huffed and grinned. "Alas, your highness, I was not."

David picked the little gem up and studied it. "This is gorgeous. Where did you…?"

"Oh, my god, you didn't steal it, did you?" Snow gasped.

Killian rolled his eyes to snow. "Aye, together with your father's crown and six horses! Of course I didn't!"

"Chill there, pal." David raised his hand. "It was a logical question."

The pirate shook his head. "Because once a pirate, always a pirate, I gather…"

Both Snow and David stared at Killian and instantly, Snow felt herself blush. "You're right. That's why I asked, and I shouldn't have. You've shown what you're made of. I'm sorry, that question was totally out of line."

David nodded in agreement. "I second that."

Killian sighed and nodded. "Very well… I'll answer anyway." He grinned and licked his lips. "It was my mother's. I kept it for the longest of times until the Jolly Roger got looted once and I lost all the treasure that was on it. Loads of gold disappeared that day, but no lost treasure ached more than the loss of this ring. So I was rather… glad to see it back here. To be honest, I have had it since the day before Pan's curse took such a nasty turn. I'd had a long chat with Neal about Emma, I told him that I was in this for the long haul and that I'd be a worthy rival for Emma's affections. And so I went to the crocodile's shop, saw it and… made an offer. He refused… until now."

David leaned forward on the table. "Knowing the feud between you and Gold, I'm surprised he let you have it for any monetary price at all."

"We've no feud anymore, mate, we shook hands, remember?" Killian grinned. "He accepted the trade."

"You must have offered something pretty priceless, if he traded with you so easily. What did you give him in return?" Snow asked with a frown.

Killian grinned a sad grin. "When Bae was in my vessel, all those years ago, he had with him a drawing, one made by his mother. It depicted his likeness, when he was a child, rather a parting gift of Milah's for her boy. When he got mad at me and decided to leave the Jolly Roger, he left it behind. So I kept it as my own, the only souvenir of young Bae's likeness I had…" He swallowed. "You'd think the Dark One had no heart? He accepted without hesitation when I offered it for my mother's ring earlier today." He shrugged. "As a father of the late Neal, I do suppose he'd value it much as I value my mother's ring."

Snow swallowed and bit her lip. "That was the only memento you had of Neal…"

The pirate nodded. "Aye."

David sighed. "Hook, Emma told us you… traded the entire Jolly Roger for a magic bean, to find her." He held Killian's stare. "Is this true?"

Killian sighed and tapped his finger on the table. "Aye." He then raised his eyes to them. "Look, I know… I am merely a pirate, and that I have not led an exemplary life. I am also well aware that I've made a lot of mistakes in my lifetime." he looked down. "I come from a line of piracy I've long fought to forget. My father is... or was, Davy Jones. And I sadly failed in my attempt at leading a life of honor; I turned to piracy the moment my brother died." He swallowed. " But I'll have you know this: All my life, I've waited for Emma. I'd have dreams of a woman like her, way before I even boarded my very first vessel. She was in my mind, years before my brother died and I became a pirate and even while I was with Milah, I had thoughts which I attributed to the idealization of a platonic desire, but they were not. Every single event that has taken place in my life, I now know, has been a path that led me to your daughter, and as a result of that, to becoming a father at her side, which, I have to say, was both a huge surprise and the best thing that has ever happened to me. I love them both, more than words could ever convey, and while I live, I vow to you that neither Emma nor Henry nor my little Lilly will want for shelter or my affection."

David sat back, staring at the man before him in complete awe. Snow smiled and reached out for Killian's hand. The Captain flinched slightly and looked at Snow with mild surprise, meeting her kind smile. "Killian…" She grinned. "In my opinion, you are a true hero. You saved us all, gave us our memories back, broke the curse, saved Lilly, came back for Emma… and all these… sacrifices, I think, make you above all things, a good man." She shrugged. "Even if you are a bit of a pirate…"

"Thank you milady." He bowed his head slightly.

David side grinned and placed the ring back on the table. "Killian… There's no other person in the world I'd rather have my daughter's hand." He smiled fully. "You're an honorable guy. So, yeah. You have our blessing, now make us all proud."

Killian nodded at both. "I understand she's a princess… Is there any… odd protocol I should know of? I mean, we already did skip the preliminaries quite a bit and gone straight to…"

"Okay, don't push it!" David raised a hand. "Yes, there is protocol. We have to do an engagement party…"

"But since this is Storybrooke, we can just make it a nice gathering at Granny's, no pomp or grandeur." Snow smiled.

Killian sighed. "I can do that."

"Perfect! We'll do it this Saturday!" Snow smiled. "Now… breakfast? I made waffles…"

"Milady Snow, it's nearly noon." Killian smiled.

"So? Have you eaten?"

"No, but…"

"There. We call these family breakfasts. Charming, did you text Emma?"

"Yeah, she'll be over in an hour with Lilly. Regina will bring Henry in about twenty minutes." He looked at Hook. "Listen, get used to it. You're part of the family now, pirate, and we do this a lot, so…"

"I'm not complaining, mate."

"Good." David chuckled. "Just some advice…"

"Aye?"

"Ever thought of… I don't know… Wearing something less… pirate?"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The day rolled on like any day in Storybrooke.

The old abandoned barn bore the scar of Zelena's curse. And as the last remains of a green mist seeped through the soil of the eerie round markings, the four colors of energy that had lit it up the previous night suddenly came to be again. A portal was being reopened.

Emma was humming around as she folded some of Lilly's clean laundry, when the little one started crying. She walked over to her and found her to be slightly… annoyed.

It took both Killian and Emma three hours to get her to sleep.

This was still far from over.


	16. As Long as we're Together

**SO, WHILE I'M STILL KEEPING UP THE MYSTERY AND THE ALTERNATE STORYLINE, I DECIDED TO DALLY WITH A LITTLE BIT OF LOVING FAMILY AND CAPTAIN SWAN FLUFF, JUST FOR A SMALL BREATHER. THERE WILL BE ANGST AHEAD, SO BRACE YOURSELVES. I WANT TO THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR MESSAGES, PROMPTS, REVIEWS AND FOLLOWS 7 FAVES. ALSO TO THOSE WHO HAVE FAVORITED ME AS AN AUTHOR, I AM TOUCHED! **

**NOW, I WILL BE AWAY FOR ABOUT 5 DAYS, BASICALLY BECAUSE IT'S FINALS WEEK AND I HAVE TO FOCUS ON PASSING MY TESTS; NEVERTHELESS, I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW THAT THE NEXT 5 CHAPTERS ARE ACTUALLY FULLY PLANNED AND I WILL NOT DROP THIS OR ANY OF MY OTHER STORIES. A LITTLE BIT OF PATIENCE! LOVE YOU ALL!**

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Aside from his new status as 'boyfriend of the savior' and 'hero', Killian had a few things to get used to.

Technology and science, Emma called it. He still couldn't wrap his head around any of those wonderful things without the use of magic; science was simply the name given to magic in this realm. How else could one duplicate people's likeness with unbelievable accuracy and have them do things over and over on a flat board of light? How could one hear the other person's voice on a receiver when the person being spoken to could be miles away? And those eerie flying contraptions that made a huge buzzing sound and had freaked the hell out of him when he first saw one?

Magic. That was all there was to it. And he relished in it, especially photographs and video. He spent hours shooting pics of his baby daughter… alone, with her brother, with her mother, with himself, before and after bath time, eating, crying, sleeping, smiling… and why not, a couple of saucy photos of Emma… for his very own private eye, certainly.

He'd have to thank David for the gift of an iPhone.

Lilly turned six months, marking three months since Emma's return and about two weeks since the witch had been defeated… two weeks since she had kind of been re-born, after her sleeping curse. Emma had already once experienced the feeling of believing her child was dead; she remembered Henry, the guilt, the anger, the feeling of being too little too late… learning she loved her son, the little boy she had given away, after she was told he was gone. She remembered those three minutes all too well… and how her realization and hurt were the main factors behind the breaking of the curse. That had been the day she had become the savior.

And now, Killian was a savior too, and it weighed on him. She didn't grill him on it, but she did catch him more than once, standing by her new crib (the bassinet had become obsolete, since she was growing fast), watching her breathe, a look of deep fear etched in his gaze, something that made Emma completely trust his deep love for Lilly as a father… the fear of losing her again had probably been the worst he'd ever experienced… and she had to fully agree, especially since she had been one to experience loss all her life. At one point, she stood out of bed and tried dragging him back, but he was uneasy, restless… and that's when Emma figured it would be an idea to buy a little baby monitor, so they could both hear her if she as much as whimpered awake.

He then slept a full night, the night before the engagement party.

Thank all the gods of the seas for the magic of Swan's realm.

It was easy for Henry to take her credit card to take Killian shopping for something more Storybrooke friendly. Emma was jittery when she saw he was out of the pirate garb, but all and any doubts settled when she took a better look… he looked pretty much the same. He had picked a shorter leather jacket and skimmed denims over a dresser vest and a blue long cuffed shirt that was actually rather formal for Killian Jones, but that he still somehow rocked it.

He could have rocked a tutu, for all she cared; her pirate was a thing of beauty.

He'd traded the old leather…. For new leather. And apparently, according to Henry, "kohl, earring, charms and rings are keepers, m'boy, don't go getting any ideas."

She could live with that. He wouldn't be Hook without them. And she loved Hook.

They arrived at Granny's circa six pm, and a loud cheer welcomed them; Lilly jumped and cried, startled, but was quickly settled by a kiss from Henry. Killian had gained a place amongst the people as the rogue pirate with a golden heart, the rebellious bad-boy-gone-good hero who had made them all remember the lost year and had saved his infant daughter from a curse, yielded his quest for revenge and given in to a life of love, as opposed to the constantly bloodthirsty existence he had earned such a dire reputation for.

But he'd still always be the town pirate. It was kind of who he was and that was kind od endearing; after all, what would a fairy tale be without a pirate?

Just before seven, Killian turned to Emma, who joined him wearing a new jacket and a pink blouse with feathered inlays. "My, my, you are a sight, savior…" He smiled as he fiddled with her lapel. "Still not trading the boots and trousers for a nice, lady ball gown, I see…"

"You kidding? Nothing's more comfortable than this!" She smiled.

"Little pirate in you, I gather, going against the norm…" He grinned back as he approached, depositing a quick kiss on her lips and wrapping his arms around her waist. "I rather like that in you, Swan."

"Good… because it's not going anywhere…"

He sighed and nodded. "Well, love, let's get on with it."

"Yeah, the sooner, the better, Lilly's really restless again." Emma frowned.

Killian furrowed his own brow and his eyes went from the baby to her mother. "Like the other night?"

"Yeah…"

"Well, then, let's do the protocol thing and then talk to Whale, see if he can have a look."

Emma grinned at him and nodded, handing the baby over to Henry as the couple went to tell David and Snow that they were ready.

David acknowledged them both with a smile, and Snow started clinking on her soda glass with a spoon. The crowd's attention was drawn to Prince Charming.

"Ok, your attention, please? Thank you! Well, it's quite a turn out!" He smiled. "So… For many years, as you all know, we lived here, in this town, under a curse, unaware of who we really were or why we were here… we sort of… drifted around. Till one day, a beautiful, bold young woman came and broke the curse." He turned to smile at Emma. "And then we all remembered. I remembered that woman sitting over there…" He smiled at Snow. "Your princess… and my wife. And with that memory of that love, came the memory of a little baby girl, one we very sadly had to relinquish so she could return to us that day, twenty-eight years later. Our daughter, Emma." He held his hand out and Emma smiled, walking to hold David's hand. "It's been tough for all of us to adapt, but here we are. And then, one day…. One day…" he tilted his brow over at Killian. "That guy came in the picture. A friggin' pirate, Captain Hook, no less. We had all heard of him, I think it's safe to say, he did have a bit of a rep. As time went by, he found himself gravitating more and more around Emma and well…" He shrugged shyly. "As a father, you can imagine, I was pretty far from pleased. But he remained. I tried to scare him away, but apparently nothing scares this dude." The people chuckled, Killian included. "Then, one day, he decided to turn around. Literally. He turned his vessel and returned to help us find my grandson, Henry. And the day he turned the helm of his ship was the day he turned the helm of his own life: From that moment on, he's done nothing but try and better himself: He saved my life, he steered us all back home on his ship, he outran a curse and sold his ship to bring Emma back to us… and now? He's the one who broke the curse and gave us back our memories. Killian Jones is a pirate… and a hero… and a friend. All of this, for one simple reason…" He took his beer mug and raised it in Killian's direction. "Love. The love he feels for Emma. So, after all this…" He put his beer glass down and took Emma's hand, pacing to where Killian stood, looking visibly awkward but happy. "…I can say without regret, Killian, that Princess Snow White and I, prince James, are pleased to grant you the hand of our daughter, Emma." He passed Emma's fingertips over to Killian, who grinned and took her hand.

The applause made both Emma and Hook blush. After they simmered down, Killian cleared his throat and nibbled on his lip. "I… am not too good at speeches..."

"Well, you do bark a lot of orders, Cap'n!" Smee shouted from the back, making everyone laugh.

"Thank you for that kind elocution, Mr. Smee, now if you'll just shut your gob before I cut your tongue and use it for fishing bait for mutiny…" He smiled at his first mate, before turning to a smiling crowd. "Bloody hell. Ok…" He sighed deep. "There's not much for me to say, really, except that I would not be here today, be the man I am, be the person you're all toasting to here, where it not for this… beautiful woman." He smiled at her. "It's all about her. She's been my very breath, from the moment we met. And yes, David, I had no intention of ever deterring!" he winked at David, who returned the gesture by raising his glass at him. He sighed and looked up. "I love Emma. That's all I know and all I care to know. And when I returned for her in New York, to find her holding my daughter in her arms, I knew I'd never leave her side now. I can only say, I am honored and privileged to have been accepted by her heart and her lovely family, princess Snow, David, master Henry… and to have fathered the lovely Lilly with her. And this honor is, I hope, one I can continue enjoying for the rest of my life, for I wouldn't have a life, this life, were it not for her. So… Swan?" He looked at her. "I promise you: I will never leave your side or give you reason to doubt me; there will never be another, I will never cease to worship every inch of your heart, your body and your soul, no matter how old we become… and all the more, I will still be with you when you're sore, horrible and yelling at me, like you usually do…" He smiled and people chuckled. He reached into his pocket and produced the ring; turning to her and doing the prototypical drop on his knee. "Will you, Emma, continue to grant me this wonderful honor… by becoming my wife?"

Emma was unable to talk through the tears, so she merely nodded and held out her hand. Killian grinned, stood up and placed it on her finger.

And that was that. A happy party ensued, where Aurora, Ruby, Belle and many other young women crowded Emma to see the heavy ring on Emma's finger, while Killian returned to Lilly, who was even grumpier than before. "Oh, darling, what's wrong?" He reached out for her.

Henry handed her to her father with a sigh and raised his eyes. And frowned.

"K… Killian?"

The pirate raised his face to the boy. "Aye, lad?"

"Wh… what is that?" He lifted his finger and pointed at something out the window.

Killian approached the window with a very concerned scorn; and behind him, everyone followed suit. "I've no idea…" He whispered.

In the distance, a blazing, twirling beam of light seemed to shoot across the sky.

"That… that is a bad thing, that light…" Came the voice of the Dark One.

They all turned to him and Emma stood by his side. "Just how bad are we talking about here, Gold?" She mumbled, still staring at the distance next to Killian.

"Very bad." He gulped.

Lilly was screaming fully in Killian's arms.

"What is wrong with you?" Emma asked, taking her in her arms and trying to console her. "Shh, Lilly, it's ok, shh…"

"I'm afraid that our fight against the Wicked Witch is not over." Gold huffed. "That's Zelena's time portal. It's open."

Everyone gasped as David and Snow stepped forward. "What the hell, she's in jail and powerless!"

Regina walked to the small committee. "Unless… you did something to her." She looked at Gold.

Gold shrugged. "Well, I'm sorry to disappoint you all, but no." He lied. "Besides, Belle's in control of me, now, Regina, you yourself handed my dagger to her."

"It's true…" Belle nodded, opening her purse and displaying the dagger.

"What if she escaped?" Snow added.

"There's only one way to find out. Emma?" David turned his face to his daughter. "Care to come with me to the precinct? We've got a witch to interrogate."

"No, David! It's their engagement party!" Snow tugged at his arm. "Besides, look at Lilly, she's very restless…"

"Aye, I'm afraid that's related to the events that are unfolding…" Gold sighed.

Everyone shot their faces at Gold. "No, not again…" Emma kissed her daughter's head.

"How so?" Killian asked.

Gold touched the baby's head with his hand before speaking. "Zelena's intentions were not completely fulfilled; she needed young Lilly's full innocence to ensure a viable portal… and one that would offer her the possibility of returning, should her plans fail. We were fortunate that th little one held out. But for every second that portal remains open… the energy of the four elements she used will continue to be absorbed from their sources. "

Emma swallowed. "Y… you mean…?"

"Yes miss Swan, and not just your daughter… But your Father, Regina and myself, shall cease to be, if that thing is not closed."

Snow gasped audibly, as did Belle and Robin.

"Bloody hell…" Killian hissed. "Can we find no quarter?"

"My only guess is that Zelena is dead." Gold nodded. "For if she was rendered powerless, only in death she could have mustered enough power to activate the gem she wore…"

"Of course." Regina nodded. "Once dead, the magic of her pendant had no tether." She shrugged. "Her last wish fulfilled."

"So how do we unfullfill it?" Emma asked sternly.

"I discovered her intentions, I should be able to come up with a viable answer to that." Belle nodded.

Killian turned to Rumple. "So… how long before... she… you all... perish?"

"A day, at most. Two, perhaps."

He and Emma exchanged looks. Emma shook her head. "Here we go again…" She turned to Gold. "You and Belle figure it out, I am checking this out myself." She didn't wait before she handed Lilly over to Killian and ran out of Granny's. Killian went after her, still holding their daughter. "SWAN WAIT!"

Gold huffed hard. "I do hope they don't fall though…" He sighed. "A trip to the past could hold catastrophic consequences."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"What were you thinking? You should have left her with my parents!" Emma dusted the dirt and leaves from her hair.

"You didn't even give me time, Swan!" He huffed as he stood up from a painful fall after cradling little Lilly with his body to ensure her safety. "You seem to love courting with danger, woman! Now where the bloody hell are we?"

"Not where; when." She asserted as she examined her daughter, who not only looked in perfect shape but was once again happy and smiling. Emma huffed. "Killian, look: The portal closed… and she stopped crying…"

"You heard Gold, darling…" Killian caressed her head and looked at Emma. "As long as the portal doesn't open, her essence is untouched. But when it does…"

"It'll start to drain her again. Shit." Emma stomped a foot on the ground. "We should have left the moment we defeated Zelena… This is EXACTLY the kind of thing that doesn't happen in New York!"

"Well, on the bright side, Swan…" He grinned mockingly. "I do believe real estate is probably a lot more reasonable here."

"Killian, DON'T!" She warned angrily.

"I understand your frustration, sweetheart, but this is not the first time we've been in the dire straits before…"

"Not with a baby!" She replied. "And not when her life, my father's and the lives of two other people are at stake!"

"All the more reason not to get antsy. We have our wits!" He smiled and sighed. "Let's focus on being constructive…" He tried to think of ways that might get them back, but his wit regarding wizardry was, in all honesty, limited. "So, love, any ideas?"

"Really? How the hell should I know how to get back to the future? Who do I look like, Marty McFly?" She asked, exasperated.

"Marty McWho?"

"You know, the kid with the DeLoran, and he went back in time and…"

"He might be of assistance, what is he, some sort of wizard?"

Emma huffed. "If we get back…"

"When." He nodded confidently.

She smiled at him and sighed. "Ok... WHEN we get back, remind me to show you that movie."

He nodded back and held her to him. "I'm sure we'll find the sufficient wizardry to…" He stopped. "Wait… I got it!" He turned to Emma and kissed her forehead. "You're a bloody genius!"

"What did I say?" She sneered.

"A wizard! That's what we need, a wizard! We need Rumplestiltskin!"

"Yeah, right. He'll kill you on sight."

"Not if we prove to him that we come from another time…"

Emma huffed. "Look at us. How are we supposed to go through the motions undetected, dressed like this?"

Killian nodded. "Good point. Let's just start walking around, I'm sure we'll reach a decent market or a launderer's where I can knick us some clothes, and…"

"Steal? You're gonna steal them?"

"Any better ideas? I'm quite sure this is the Enchanted Forest and I am also sure that they don't take credit cards like they do back home."

Emma frowned. "How do you… know about credit cards?"

He shrugged and looked down at his new clothes. "Just don't tell Henry I told you, he said you'd ground him."

She chuckled and shook her head. "Whatever. Let's just… get a move on."

The sound of galloping hooves drew Killian's gaze, and he immediately dragged Emma and Lilly behind a tree. "Shh, Black Knights!"

They both observed in silence as the escort of the Evil Queen passed by them, stopping at what looked like a little village down below. "Look, over there…" Emma whispered.

The little family made its way down through the trees and hid behind a bush, witnessing how Regina, still in her role as the Evil Queen, threatened the villagers if they dared help Snow White hide or escape. She held a prisoner, a beautiful and tall brunette that looked decidedly terrified… and whom all seemed to know. When Emma almost jumped to help her, Killian reminded her how important it was to keep the timeline as unaltered as possible.

After the queen left, Killian passed the baby over to Emma and he cleverly snuck his way around as a highly amused Emma watched from a small hill top as her fiancée cleverly managed to steal clothing for himself and his two ladies without being seen. She remembered herself doing that, jumping into fenced homes during sunny Boston summer days, to steal clothes from drying lines in gardens, and making a run for it. "Damn, your dad's good." She grinned. Lilly gargled and giggled mildly. "Glad you agree, sweetie."

Killian returned. "Here… you might need help with the bodice, though."

He handed her a heavy peasant girl's dress, while he wore something equally humble. For Lilly, he found a single shift gown which they placed over her Storybrooke clothes to keep her as warm as possible, and a home-weaved wool cloth.

When Emma finished dressing, Killian eyed her much in the same style he had when he saw her in her green baby doll. A very notoriously lascivious "Whoa…" Escaped his lips, his gaze firmly ensconced on her still sizeable breasts. "That… is much better." he grinned.

"Yeah you'd think that. God, this thing is going to bust my spleen."

"Your discomfort is a cross I'm willing to bear." He smiled, finally looking into her eyes. "I'm sorry, Swan, I just… I'd never seen you in MY neck of the woods, or at least not dressed like someone from that vicinity, and I have to say, you look like you really do belong here… " He kissed her gently. "My maiden in the woods..."

"And you look like a lumberjack." She chuckled.

"So much for my chivalrous compliment." He smiled back.

"If it makes you feel any better, you're far sexier in your pirate garb." She winked." Now come on, let's get moving and find Rumple. I want to close this thing and go home."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

A collective execution had just taken place.

Queen Regina pranced around the now lifeless bodies if the hanging heroes who had refused to tell where and when they had seen Snow White.

One of them was the beautiful, young brunette.

Regina looked at her and grinned. "These people really do thake the whole 'silence till the grave' thing quite seriously… Idiots." She shook her head and laughed. "Take them down! Burn them!"

As a large pyre turned the carcasses to ash, an identical copy of the woman stared with a smile.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Terrifying. That was the only word Emma could think of to depict Rumplestiltskin's true form. And yes; he did look every bit like a crocodile… the coldness, the scaly skin, even the eyes were reptilian. She had barely managed to convince him not to strangle Killian.

Struck by the beauty of Lilly Jones and Emma's compelling story about a plan he had told no one about, he managed to allow the pirate to live. And even if Killian would bear the nasty marks of invisible fingers around his neck, he was grateful to the Dark One for sparing him… and wondered why the hell he had been so recklessly in pursuit of such a powerful and evil sorcerer in his younger years. What the hell had he been thinking? And drinking!

"So you spin quite a story…" He sat on his chair at the end of a very long table. "… and not quite as surprising as the fact that I haven't killed the pirate in the future.."

Killian nodded. "Aye, well, we've pretty much buried the hatchet."

"Alas… why not in your skull?"

The captain huffed and Emma stifled a chuckle.

"Anyway… what is the…. Hassle that brings you to me today, future savior?"

Emma walked to him. "You have… had… a pupil once, Zelena…"

"Ah, yes. She turned green." Rumple nodded with a grin.

"That… would be her." Killian grinned back.

Emma huffed. "Listen, she tried… will try, in the future, to enact a time travel spell and, as you can see, she will succeed. The problem is, that to do that, she needs four elements and, unfortunately… your brain will be one of them."

That deleted the smile from The Dark One's face. "I'm listening…"

"The other three ingredients are the bravery of a devout man, the heart of a strong ruler, the innocence of the product of true love, and the brainwork of the greatest wizard."

"So, it is safe to assume, I have perished in your time."

"No, you have not." Killian held his hand out. "The portal was only open for a short time… so only a part of that essence was taken. But should it open again…"

"It might drain my life in its entirety…"

"Indeed… And… " he gulped and looked at Lilly, now sleeping soundly. "My daughter's."

Rumple looked at Emma. "So, you are the product of true love I shall deem to break my curse, and your child is THE NEW product of true love… with the pirate." He turned with a smirk to Killian "Alas, had I known my wife was not your true love, such a shame, isn't it?"

Killian huffed.

"I know you don't want to die the victim of someone you trained yourself, do you?" Emma grinned.

"Why, certainly not!" Rumple grinned and stood up. "And it is quite unlike me, but I wouldn't want the savior and breaker of MY curse to lose her child, either. However… all help requires sacrifice, princess, and as you know, magic comes with a price." He looked at them both.

Killian swallowed. "And what would you require from us?"

The dark one approached Killian with a smirk. "Oh, a little thing neither of you shall ever, ever miss…" Killian pulled Lilly closer to his chest and Rumple chuckled. "… and it's not your child."

_Man, this guy's got an eerie cackle_, Emma thought as she turned to him. "Enough crap, what do you want?"

Rumple lifted his fingers and turned a smiling face to her. "Well… a strand of your hair… and one of his." He smiled as he walked to her. "Long have I looked for true love that can be bottled and isolated. Now, if you two are IT, then… you shall have my help. If not…" He looked at Lilly. "…then I get to keep the product."

"NO!" Emma barked.

"What are you worried about, dearie?" He smiled. "I was about to claim hair ffrom your parents, alas, I can make the process faster… and after I help you, I shall make a memory potion to completely forget your visitation. I have my portion of love, you have the life of your child. Besides… You are truly sure that the pirate IS INDEED your true love, are you not?"

Killian walked over and tucked a hair from his head. "Here…"

"Killian!" Emma turned to him.

"Why are you hesitating, darling? I know I am sure of it. Aren't you?" He hissed, staring daggers at Rumple.

The Dark One took Hook's hair and turned to Emma. "Well, princess… aren't you?"

Emma knew how she felt. She swallowed hard, knowing that if Killian had not backed away, then she wouldn't, either. She tugged out a long strand and handed it to Rumple.

He took the two strands and walked to a cabinet, where he produced a flask. In it he popped Emma's strand and then Killian's, and waited… and soon, a mild, purplish glow began to shine through the glass. "True love…" he whispered with a grin, turning to show the couple the flask in his hand. "As you can see, he one ingredient no other wizard has ever been able to harness. It's the greatest of all magic; it can break any spell, in any realm, at any time. Who would have thought it… pirate?"

Both Emma and Killian sighed deep with relief before looking at each other with a knowing grin. Emma then turned to Rumple. "Now, will you help us?"

"Why, certainly! I am a man of my word…" He walked to them. "There is a certain wand that I came to possess. Story has it that it can reproduce any kind of magic that's ever been made. I shall retrieve it and try to work through it. In the meantime, the two of you should really not be wandering around looking like that, with stolen clothes. It's a miracle the timeline hasn't imploded already… Amateurs." He flicked his hand and the two now wore different attires, equally peasant but new. "Now, if you'll allow me, I've work ahead of me. Just one thing, I need to know…" he approached Emma. "You know all about this curse, dearie, so answer: Do I find my son?"

having recently buried Neal, both Hook and Emma licked their lips repeatedly.

"I SAID, ANSWER ME!"

Lilly shook awake and whimpered.

"Y.. yes…" Emma nodded.

"Bae…" He smiled, showing a modicum of tenderness for the first time.

"And what about her?" Killian looked down at his daughter. "We need to find shelter, food…"

"I'm ahead of you, captain. Return to the forest, unseen if at all possible. You will find a house in the woods; I have just sort of made it… liveable… for you two. Three. It will be visible only to you, it will have a cloaking spell; and I shall find you there, once I figure out how the wand works. All you need will be there. However…" He approached. "Should you want to leave the area, best be sure you are unseen, for a change in the timeline, will be catastrophic."

No sooner had he said it, he poofed them away and they found themselves in what appeared to be a rather comfortable little wooden cottage, with a fire ready lit and a table served with food.

"Well…" Killian smiled. "Never expected this touch from the dark one…" He turned to find a perfectly set wooden cradle and turned to Emma. "Look, love, even she will have a good night's sleep tonight."

Emma sighed and took her from his arms, touching her bottom. "She needs a change…"

Like magic, cloth diapers appeared on the bed.

"Ok… I'll get her cleaned up. Killian, do we have enough to bather her?"

He walked around the cottage and found a compartment with a very large, tin tub. He grinned and dragged it out. "Aye… Seems big enough for the three of us."

After collecting water from an outside well and warming it in the fire, the three slipped into the tub and washed, and even Emma had to admit it was probably the best moment she had ever had with her new little family. This was something she had unfortunately missed with Henry, and even being in the goddamned Enchanted Forest was not too bad with Killian and Lilly by her side.

Once Lilly had been fed and swaddled and was sleeping soundly, she and Killian cuddled together, the sound of the fire crackling the only sound in the room.

"Do you think we will get back?" Emma whispered, feeling safe in his arms as he quite literally spooned her.

"Hmm?" He responded groggily.

She turned and huffed. "God, I'm sorry, you were asleep…"

"Aye… but ask again, my love…"

She turned to him completely. "Do you think we will go back home?"

"One way or another…" He huffed. "Hopefully soon…"

"What if we don't?" she sighed. "What f we're stuck here?"

"Swan…" He opened his eyes and kissed her shoulder. "If I have to stay here and wait thirty years, if you're beside me, I don't care…"

She swallowed and felt a tear sting her eye. "Henry…"

"Emma… have faith, love." He smiled. "We shall see your son again."

"You think so?"

He grinned and twirled her hair in his fingers. "I've yet to see you fail…"

She smiled back at him. And touched the tip of his nose. "Did you see that flask? With our hairs?"

"Aye…" He grinned back.

"Who would have thought…"

"I always knew."

She smiled and laughed softly. "Sure you did." She kissed him softly. "Hey… I have a thought…"

He sighed softly. "Which is…?"

"Well, we don't know how long we will be stranded here, and we just got engaged."

"What's your point, Swan?"

She swallowed. "You'll think I'm insane."

"I already do."

She laughed again and bit her lip as she gathered courage. "Let's… just get married."

That managed to completely waken the captain. "Come again?"

"Yeah… what if we DO have to stay here for the next thirty years?" She sighed. "I'd love to have my mom and dad around and everyone, but… what of we don't get a chance to go home?"

He propped himself up on the bed. And scratched the back of his ear. "Well, given that the Dark One gave us strict warning against going out, love, I find the idea of wandering in search for a minister or judge rather… hasty."

Emma side grinned. "And who needs a minister… when we have a captain?"

The sudden realization that he was indeed a sea captain and, in all terms, legally capable of officiating marital unions suddenly dawned on him, and a large smile crossed his face. "Do you… really want to do this, Emma?"

She ran her hand through his hair. "Yep. So if we get back…"

"When…"

"When, we get back, we can just do another one, for everyone to attend. And if we don't, we will at least know we are kind of… official."

"Are you always this practical, Swan?" He caressed her face.

She nodded. "As sure as my name is Emma."

He sighed and grinned. "When?"

"Now."

"What... just like so?" HE smiled and shook his head in dismay.

She sat up on the bed. "What it comes down to is this, buddy: You, me and what we have. I don't care if I'm wearing a designer dress and Louboutins…"

"Loo-boo-whats?" He sneered as he sat up as well.

She shook her head. "Fancy shoes. Never mind. The point is… if we make vows…" She touched his face. "What matters is, we love each other. That's all. Besides, what can be more perfect for a wedding than a cottage in the woods?" She laughed, before caressing his face. "I don't care, Killian. Look at us, we're in the middle of nowhere, wearing pretty much old fashioned cotton underwear… and we still have each other. Let's just do it." She swallowed. "I'm ready. For the first time in my life, I'm completely ready. Wherever my life is meant to lead, I want it to be with you… Killian Jones. As long as we're together, we can do anything. And I promise you…" She grabbed his hand and kissed it. "…that no matter how dark and crazy things might get, I will be here for you, I will always be by your side… and God knows I will never, ever want to leave." She caressed his face. "I used to be afraid of saying this, but now I can't stop myself… I love you… and I always will."

Killian looked at her with unbridled love in his gaze as he sighed. "Are those your vows, now, love?"

She laughed aloud. "Didn't know we had started, but… yeah. Yeah they are."

"Aye, love… very well." He cleared his throat, and looked at her. "Emma Swan, I was lost before. I was sailing a dark sea, with a dark purpose… then one day you came and shone light into my life…" He turned to the blanket and using hook and teeth, ripped a little piece of thread from it. "I have followed that light ever since. I'm drawn to it, to you, like a bug. And I can't and don't want to ever stop basking in the light that is Emma Swan, so…" He began to tie a hoop and a little knot around her finger. "I vow to you, that no matter where lofe leads, I shall always remain, loyally, at your side. Nothing, not the wildest storm or the deepest, widest ocean, will keep me apart from you and our family. And should we ever be separated… be sure I will always come back to you. Always." He finished tying the little knot and raised his eyes to her. "I love you too, Emma. With all I have in me. And will do so till my dying day."

She entwined her hand in his and sighed as he nervously grinned through the final wording of their little impromptu ceremony. "As captain of the Jolly Roger and Lieutenant of the Jewel of the Realm, I am hereby entitled to pronounce you… us… " He gulped and smiled hard. "Mand and wife."

Emma grunted a nervous giggle. "Aaaand… you may kiss the bride?"

He laughed aloud and took her in his arms. "Aye, sweetheart, that's the next common step." He kissed her soundly. "Now you've really gone and done it Swan, as a captain, this little rite of ours has been completely true AND very binding…"

She bit her lip. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

He sighed and caressed her hair. "So…" He licked his lip. "…about that honeymoon, Mrs. Jones…"

She laughed and pressed her lips to his, silently pulling him down to the bed, where they made love until the dawn.


	17. It can break any spell

**SO, I FOUND A BRIEF WINDOW AMIDST THE MADNESS TO UPDATE YET ONE MORE CHAPTER, AND I DO HAVE SOME THINGS TO SAY HERE: FIRST AND FOREMOST, GRATITUDE WHERE IT'S DUE: MY MOST FREQUENT AND LOYAL REVIEWERS: KT, ALEXANDRA SARAFOLEAN, LEXIE MCSTEAMY, NOUQUERET, LUVTHEORIGINALS, CKAHAKI, ANGELSHEART1, AND SKYEWARD MUSICLOVER: THANK YOU SO SO SO MUCH, YOU GUYS ARE SO COOL, MAKING COMMENTS AND SUGGESTIONS AND BEST OF ALL, ACTUALLY ENJOYING THIS! AND TO ALL OTHERS WHO HAVE POSTED THEIR APPRECIATION (AND THOSE WHO HAVE POSTED THEIR LOATHING, AS WELL) I ALSO THANK YOU! **** THIS STORY HAS BEEN SO MUCH FUN TO WRITE AND MADE EVEN MORE FUN BY YOUR POSITIVISM AND SUPPORT!**

**THAT BEING SAID, THERE IS ONE STATEMENT I DO HAVE TO MAKE: I AM VERY MUCH IN FAVOR OF CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM AND HAVE TAKEN MORE THAN ONE NOTICE FROM A FEW REVIEWERS REGARDING LITTLE DETAILS THAT I MAY HAVE DONE WORNGLY OR PROMPTS THAT WOULD REALLY ENRICH THE SOTRY, AND I AM ALSO PRETTY RESPECTFUL O PEOPLE'S IDEAS TO THE POINT WHERE (AS YOU ALL KNOW) I WAS THIS CLOSE TO NOT CONTINUING DUE TO POSSIBLE COINCIDENTIAL PLAGIARISM ON MY PART. SO I'M GAME. HOWEVER, THERE IS THIS ONE REVIEWER (ANON, OF COURSE) WHO SEEMS TO REALLY, REALLY HATE THE IDEA OF MY STORY TAKING ON OTHER CHARACTERS' ROLES AND MAKE THEM INTO SOMETHING DIFFERENT FROM THE ORIGINAL PLOT. SO TO YOU, MY DEAR ANON, I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW THAT THE PURPOSE OF FAN FICTION IS PRECISELY TO EXPLORE ****ALTERNATIVE VERSIONS**** OF THE PLOT! EVER HEARD OF AU FICTION? THOSE ARE COMPLETELY DIFFERENT, EVEN MORE SO THAN MY STORY, AND ARE INCREDIBLE FUN TO BOTH READ AND WRITE. IF YOU ARE NOT PARTIAL TO CAPTAIN SWAN AND YOU DON'T ENJOY SEEING A TWIST ON THE ORIGINAL WRITING, THEN I SUGGEST YOU STICK TO THE SHOW AND THE SHOW ALONE; FANFICTION IS NOT FOR YOU IF YOU CAN'T TAKE THE TWISTS. ALSO, I UNDERSTAND YOU ARE ENTITLED NOT TO SHIP CS OR ENJOY MY STORY, HELL, I'LL DEFEND YOUR RIGHT NOT TO ENJOY IT TO THE DEATH. HOWEVER, IF THIS IS YOUR OPINION, IT SEEMS RATHER ABSURD THAT YOU HAVE READ UP UNTIL CHAPTER 16 ONLY TO SAY "WHY DO YOU INSIST ON TAKING SNOWING STUFF FROM THEM AND HAVING CAPTAIN SWAN DO IT?" WHY? BECAUSE IT'S FUN!, OR SAYING "NO THANKS". TO A STORY YOU HAVE READ UP TILL CHAPTER 16! I GET THAT YOU THINK HOOK IS CRASS AND DISGUSTING AND OK, YOU DON'T LIKE THE GUY, AND THAT'S COOL… SO I ENCOURAGE YOU TO FIND A STORY MORE OF YOUR LIKING AND BASED ON A SHIP THAT YOU ACTUALLY SUPPORT. BECAUSE I SURE AS HELL WANT TO CONTINUE WRITING THIS, AND A 172 PEOPLE FOLLOWING THE STORY EXPECT THE SAME FROM ME. I WON'T DISSAPOINT THEM. I AM TRULLY SORRY YOU'RE NOT HAPPY WITH THIS TALE, BUT I AM SURE THERE WILL BE ONE OUT THERE IN THIS FORUM MORE TO YOUR LIKING. STOP READING WHAT YOU DON'T ENJOY, BUD, IT'S KIND OF POINTLESS. NONETHELESS, I APPRECIATE YOU DROPPING BY AND LEAVING A COMMENT; NO MATTER IF IT'S A LITTLE PISSY AND NEGATIVE, I STILL ENJOY READING WHAT PEOPLE THINK.**

**THAT BEING SAID…. ON WITH THE SHOW!**

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

They lost track of the days… the weeks… maybe even months.

Aside from missing her family, Emma missed one thing with a vengeance: Her razor. The Enchanted Forest seemed to have blades, but being unable to leave the cottage made it impossible for her or Killian to shave. She hated it, even if she knew she was in a safe and confident circle: Her daughter and her husband. Killian himself sported a beautiful beard, but with his overall looks, it didn't matter. She had never seen him clean shaven, but god knew he rocked a full beard like a pro.

Her, on the other hand… even when Killian had repeatedly insisted it didn't matter and that she was still the most gorgeous creature on earth, she was sick and tired of seeing fuzzier legs than before.

Maybe she had more princess in her than she'd care to admit.

So being in the Enchanted Forest, practically a prisoner, would have been far worse had she fallen alone; Having Lilly and Killian by her side made it tolerable. They had the basics covered: food, water and a warm bed to sleep in. But as much as she found this impromptu marriage and honeymoon a great way to connect even deeper with Killian, Emma cried herself to sleep on a frequent basis, held by her pirate: Henry. She missed Henry, above all things. And David and Snow, whom she had never really given a real chance. How she wished to be there, to let them hear her call them mom and dad! Why did she always realize what she had once she lost it? Why did she have to be so damn scared all the time?

An expert star reader, Killian had calculated, by the movement of the stars above their heads, that six months had passed. It was visible in Lilly: she was growing fast and was now a confident and podgy and beautiful and while the portal remained closed, Lilly was safe. Six months… six stupidly long months. Considering Lilly was already six months when they had arrived, this meant the little one was already one year of age. That would explain how she now grabbed on to walls to pace little by little, although she had not quite yet taken the leap of faith to walk on her own. She was articulate and had started to babble beautifully, to her parents' great amusement. Not to mention she was really flaunting her very own character; Killian had been right: She was already an adorable little pirate: Strong-willed, with a magnificently powerful temper that would vary from the most adorably charming child to unbelievable stormy tantrums that only Killian seemed to be able to control. She may have been quite the pirate, but he was still the Captain. Things like singing herself to sleep, dancing when she was sung to, laughing over anything and everything, and having enounced "papa" and later "mama" had both Emma and Hook crazy over their little girl.

Still… Henry.

Killian would frequently hold Emma from behind as she curled up at night, sobbing quietly, and he'd kiss her hair softly. This night was like all other nights.

"We'll get back to your lad, Swan… I swore I'd look after him, and I shall, we've not seen the end of this."

"What if… we have to stay stuck in here until the curse?" she huffed, snivelling. "What if we…?"

"Well, should it come to that, Henry shall welcome an older mum and stepfather and a baby sister who is now much older than he is." He chuckled and rubbed her arm. "Crazier things have happened in his family tree, love, I'm sure he'll understand…" Emma chuckled and turned around to face him with an adoring grin. "The important thing is, love, to go back, no matter when; to remain together, to keep the portal closed until a safe way to open it has been devised, to keep Lilly safe." He caressed her hair. "Don't lose hope, Emma."

"Yeah… if my mother were here, she'd tell me not to lose hope…" She whispered.

"There you have it. Hold on to that." He kissed her forehead and held her to himself. "All will be well, Swan. Don't lose faith, love."

"What the heck would I do without you?" She sighed into his chest, already feeling the sleep come to her eyes.

He didn't reply. Tears were also burning his own eyes, as he thought of the young boy whom he had also grown quite fond of; he was, after all, a little piece of the two people he had loved the most: Bae and Emma. He ached for her sake, he cried for every single tear she cried...

He had to get them back home.

That following morning, the table had been served with the usual meal; it had to be said that the Dark One was pretty much aware of keeping them fed for as long as they needed to remain there. They had a pleasant breakfast, played with Lilly (who thank the gods, had taken to eating partial solids now and had weaned off Emma) and were about to start their normal day, when the unmistakable laughter of Rumplestiltskin caught their attention.

"My… how time has passed. The babe is growing! How she looks like the pirate…" He grinned.

"You failed to keep your word…" Killian hissed, standing suddenly and nearly knocking the table over. "You said you'd find a way to get us out of here and close the portal for good…"

"And what makes you think I've backed on my word, sonny boy?" He smiled slyly. "I am here with… advancements. As it turns out…" he threw the magic wand at Emma. "I have found that I alone cannot wield the necessary magic to open the portal. Apparently, only those who used it, can reopen it. So, I truly hope the savior here, has what it takes!"

Emma stared at the wand in her hands. "But… if I open it... Lilly..?"

"And that, dearie, is part B of our problem." He grinned. "There is one way to counteract the effect of the opening. However, it cannot be stopped. Should you run through it, chances are, me, your little one and the other two, could easily perish in the process." He flaunted the little flask of True Love before their faces. "See this, dearies? This… is what could effectively close the portal once you reach the other side and return the essence to all of us."

Killian huffed and smiled as he paced to the Dark One. "Well, give us here!"

"Ah... ah… ah!" Rumple held his hand up and Killian stopped dead in his tracks. "I found your answer, for the price of your two hairs. This… has another price."

They should have known; this old Rumple was indeed quite the pain in the ass. A scary pain in the ass.

"What is it you want this time?" Emma moaned.

"Oh… an easy task, taking into account that you are a savior and you…" He turned to Killian. "…are supposedly the fastest bladesman in history, although I beg to differ with the latter, considering I had you on the floor five minutes into our duel."

Killian rolled his eyes.

"Spit it, Rumplestiltskin, I wanna get the hell out of here!" Emma barked.

"Ooooh, confidence! I like it!" he paced around the cottage. "A mere trinket. You said it was Zelena that did this, did you? If she opened the portal, it means she is somehow… around."

Emma frowned. "No…"

"No?"

"Back in our time, you said that she had to die to be able to open it! That she somehow…"

"Ah, yes…. The nasty topic of death…" He sad himself on a large wooden chair, and put his feet up on a little wooden stool. "Do you know what happens when you die, highness? You move on. And where you go, remains a mystery, even to me. Hence… the way to open the portal was to die… in the form she was." He wrinkled his nose. "The pretty little green skinned red headed witch is no more, but… she must have assumed another form. One that you would never be able to identify as Zelena."

Killian huffed and looked to the floor. "Bloody hell, her again…" He looked back to the imp. "And what is it that we're supposed to do to get…that thing?" He pointed at the flask.

"Quite simple. Find her. And when you do, bring her to me… She is no supposed to be here, wreaking havoc. She is a liability to everyone in the future."

"And have you any clue what she looks like?" Emma quipped.

Rumple laughed that horrid laughter that managed to raise goose bumps on her skin every single time. "Alas… that is for you to figure out, savior."

"So, are we to leave the cottage?" Killian smiled. "At last!"

"Aye…" Rumple nodded. "But not like that."

"Then how are we…"

POOOOF. A large cloud of red smoke twirled around the couple and, when they looked again, he was dressed like… well, a prince. And Emma wore a gorgeous albeit horribly tight red ball gown. Both were clean and looking ready to attend what would apparently be a very important soiree. even Hook looked shaven! Clean shaven. A first for Emma.

Damn he was gorgeous.

"Why do I look like a bloody snotty royal princeling, Crocodile?" Killian growled.

"My my, how testy are we! Have you forgotten there, Captain, that you have wed a princess?" He giggled again. "Do you know what that makes you?"

Killian huffed, unable to reply; he hadn't really thought about that particular title.

"How do you know that we…?" Emma bit her lip.

"I know everything, dearie… Love is a tell-tale feeling. Now… A carriage awaits the two of you. It will lead you to a ball. Zelena is there. Find her, and then, you will be able to go home. I shall, however, need a surety…" The wand disappeared from Emma's hand… and Lilly disappeared from her cot.

Killian instantly reached for the poke iron and pointed it at Rumple. "WHERE IS SHE?"

"Relax. She is well, no harm should come to her at all, even if you should fail. You can't very well attend a ball with a baby now, can you?" He flicked a finger and the poke iron heated up. Killian winced and dropped it. Rumplestiltskin paced, seriousness plastered on his face, to Killian, "I may be the Dark One…. But I have a son to find. Even I do not dwell in magic involving the lives of children. The price is far too steep. So take my word… pirate: No harm… shall come to your daughter." He walked to Emma, who was shaking, fists clenched, and nodded. "Now… you know what to do… now go do it. Once you get it done, I shall give you the wand, the flask and your child."

And away he puffed into a cloud of smoke.

"Killian…" Emma looked helplessly to the captain.

The pirate heaved with anger as he nodded. "Swan… let's get this thing done, find the witch, get our girl back and then go home. And gods better stop me from slaughtering Zelena when we do find her…"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The ball was being held at the mansion of King Midas, just west of where they had been lodged. Regardless of their emotional turmoil, Killian and Emma were grateful to see something other than the immediacy of the little cottage. The scents, the view… even seeing people other than themselves was gratifying.

Even while Emma wore the constant scorn that was such a trademark of hers, she was kind of confident that Lilly was well.

She definitely trusted Rumplestiltskin far more than Zelena. And oddly enough, so did Killian.

And the wizard had taken his hand.

Climbing off the carriage, Emma held on to Killian's arm. "You know, we didn't even wonder what would happen… all of these people will see us. What if they remember our faces? We're not supposed to stick out…"

They walked over a moat with a gold and glass floor, and Killian smiled confidently. "I think the Crocodile was ahead of us, love. Look down." Emma turned her face to the water below her, and staring back at her was a funny looking blond, standing next to a tall and ruggedly handsome guy who looked nothing like the pirate Captain.

Emma smiled. "A glamour spell! Regina told me about those!" she turned to him with a grin. "Still, how are we supposed to find Zelena?"

"I've a feeling she will be the one to find us, Swan."

Killian handed in the invitation, and turned a smiling face to the ball. Emma squeezed his arm. "And just when I thought clothes in this world couldn't be any worse… ugh… I can't breathe."

Killian smiled at her. "You may not be able to breathe, my love, but you do cut quite the figure in that dress…"

"And you really wanted to see me in a ball gown, didn't you?" She huffed. "Corsets are a bitch."

"They may be uncomfortable, my darling, but they work wonders on your silhouette." He smirked. "You, Emma, are truly a sigh for the sorest of eyes…"

She simply smiled. A compliment like that was not to be refuted.

They entered the ball under the first pseudonyms Emma could quickly muster up (Prince Charles and Princes Leia, go figure), and as soon as Emma zeroed on the dancing couples creating beautiful figures on the dance floor, she was jaw slacked. "Now what do we do?"

Killian took her hand and grinned. "We blend in." He pulled her to the dance floor.

"Wait… you know how to do… this thing, whatever it is?"

Killian smiled. "I wasn't born a pirate, my love. I did learn how to waltz. Remind me to tell you a story of the Ball at the Naval Academy." He smiled at her and bowed slightly. "May I have this dance, milady?"

Emma looked terrified. "I… have no idea how to…"

"Oh it's easy enough…" He took her hand and placed it on his shoulder while she leaned her other hand on his prosthetic. "There's only one rule: Pick a partner who knows what he's doing."

Done that, she thought, as she allowed him to glide her out into the dance floor. As it happened, Killian Jones turned out to be quite a skilled dancer; the feeling of twirling around the dance hall was bliss and oblivion, and the two stared into each others' eyes, smiling.

The music was cut short by the sound of doors slamming violently open, and Regina, the Evil Queen, made her way through the halls.

"Shit, why is she here? That wasn't in the plan!" Emma whispered.

Killian pulled her to him. "Breathe love, she's just a guest. Can you imagine what would have happened to the host had she not been invited?"

"If she's a guest, why the hell does he have her personal posse with her?"

"Aye… good point." He bit his lip. "We really should find a way out of here…"

"But… Zelena!"·

"We'll never find her if we're dead, Swan. Let's go…"

Emma followed him, trying hard to lift the heavy dress below her. "Killian… will we get Lilly back?"

He stopped and turned to her, grabbing her firmly by the shoulders. "We will. And we will go home with her. Now let's find a way out of this place…"

Through corridors and walled passages, they made it to a back courtyard. They stood behind a wall and saw the area was heavily guarded with guards from Regina's entourage… and with them was a jail carriage… with a young, beautiful woman, curled up in the back.

"Hook, look…" Emma whispered. "It's that woman! She's still alive!"

"What woman?" He turned to her and then back to the cart.

"Remember when we first got here? She was that woman you told me not to help, in the village!" she smiled. "She's still alive!"

"Swan, don't even…"

"Are we just supposed to pretend this isn't fate, Killian? Come on! If she had been meant to die, Regina would have killed her already!"

"True…" Killian bit his lips, and then his eyes widened. "Wait… that could be her."

"What, Zelena?" Emma sneered. "Come on! She's just a sweet, innocent..."

"Emma…" Killian pulled her slightly to the side. "She made herself look like Ariel and fooled everyone, and that bloody trick cost me a curse and almost mine and Henry's life." He peeked out the side before turning back to Emma. "Use your wit, Swan: Why would Regina spare her life and bring her here, of all places, where WE happen to be, six months later?"

Emma bit her lip and looked out to the miserable- looking woman in the jail cart. "What can we do?"

"One way to find out. Use your magic."

"You kidding, right? And that is supposed to go unnoticed! Next thing you know it will be us in that cart!"

"Not with your skills, love." He winked at her.

Emma sighed and looked out to the woman. "Wait… Killian, look… She's…"

"Gone? Yes, I'm quite good at that."

They both spun around and found the beautiful young woman standing behind them. "I must say, your baby girl was a perfect ingredient…" She smiled at them. "And once I'm done… You two will pay with her blood for what you did, getting in my way. I shall destroy Regina, one way or another…" She flicked a hand and a time portal opened.

"NO!" Emma screamed.

"What's the matter? Afraid that what's left of her will wane?" She laughed back. "Don't worry dear. You're still young. I am sure you can very well make another one. As for your family? Well, no promises. But Regina will see her life torn to shreds when that damn thief finds his wife and mother of his child is quite alive… or well…" She wrinkled her nose. "Sort of."

Emma had no wand to close the time gate; but she thought of Lilly. She could feel her, screaming and crying, as what was left of her innocence was rapidly draining out of her. She closed her eyes hard and lowered her head. "Lilly…" She whispered, feeling herself muster up a cloud of white light around her, thinking of the past months of joy, happiness and beauty, watching her grow, hearing her laugh, cry, play… she also thought of the man beside her: His constant company, his enduring love for her and the night he tied that little thread around her finger in the same fashion he had tied that scarf around her wound atop the beanstalk.

Love surrounded Emma Swan and she began to glow in white.

Killian smiled. "Do it Swan, finish this sorcery!"

Emma opened her eyes from under her brow. "You will NOT take my little girl from me, you bitch…" She growled, and a massive blast of energy burst out of Emma. The time portal changed colors and Zelena ducked to the floor, screaming.

Killian ran to her and grabbed her by the hair, holding his hook to her neck. "Now listen hard, woman…" He hissed into her ear. "You have failed. Either you cease this magic, or you die, here and now."

A single burst of smoke popped suddenly, and Rumplestiltskin showed up. "Not so fast there, pirate!" He shoved Killian away without effort. "You found the witch I see… Like I said, I am a man of my word."

"Rumple!" Zelena smiled from the floor. "I had missed this side of you! The scaly… uglier side, I mean."

"Strange I didn't miss any of your sides, Zelena dear, now if you don't mind, I have a business deal to seal with the pirate." He flicked his hand again and immobilized Zelena.

The portal was still glowing open.

"MUY DAUGHTER!" Emma screamed.

"Yes… Here." He puffed Lilly into Killian's arms. But the little girl was weak and the light in her eyes had begun to wane.

"No… no, my little darling, not again! Hold on, sweet pea!" Killian held her hard and turned to Rumplestiltskin. "Hurry up! What do we have to do next?"

"Savior, you shall need this!" he produced the little flask of true love. "Now, as soon as you reach your world, pour no more than three drops of it into the portal. That should seal it for good and destroy the spell. The closure of the portal should stop the draining. However, it will not be enough: Once the passage is sealed, you will need one drop of this on each of the affected people. Save the rest for your family…. And myself. Like I said… true love, can break ANY spell. I shall collect it again in due course, from YOUR mother and father."

"EMMA LET'S GO! SHE'S WEAKING BY THE SECOND!" Killian hollered.

Emma turned to Killian and then back to Rumple. "What will happen to Zelena?"

"She will never bother you again…"

"And what about you?" Emma begged. "Knowing what you know will definitely not be good!"

Another little flask suddenly appeared in his hand. "This… dearie… is a forgetting potion. And as soon as you are hone, I shall drink it. I don't need anything in my path to change my plan of finding and seeing my son…" He seemed suddenly serious as he nodded at Emma. "You have my word, Emma Swan."

Emma simply grinned.

"Now leave… before it's too late!"

Emma thanked him, bowing her head, before running to Killian. "LET'S GO HOME!" She screamed and pulled them both into the vortex.

Once they were gone, the swirling light closed and silence took over. Not even Regina's guard became aware f what had happened.

The woman stared at Rumple from the floor. "And what will become of you, I wonder…" Rumple cackled. "The vault. Where you'll cease to be a problem to my pupil Regina, my plans and me. You've done enough in this and every lifetime."

With another swift flick of his wrist, Zelena was suddenly sucked into a large urn in his hands. He smiled. "Now off you go to the cabinet. Don't worry dearie, you'll be chilling for a long, long time with your cellmate, Queen Elsa."

Poof.

He then drank the potion and tossed the flask aside. As the memories of the past six months' eerie adventures were slowly deleted form his mind, he turned to look around him. "What the hell am I doing here?"

And he unceremoniously willed himself back to his mansion.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Killian landed with a thud and a grunt. Not two seconds later, Emma landed by his side.

"Killian…" She huffed. "Lilly?"

The pirate looked at the baby in his arms. "She's bloody passed out, Swan! DO IT!"

Emma panted heavily as she produced the flask and dropped, according to Rumple's instructions, exactly three drops on the portal. A massive blaze of light shot upwards from the core and in no more than three seconds, the portal was not just closed, but the markings had disappeared.

Silence took over Storybrooke.

"Emma…" Killian panted. "She's almost…"

"No. No she's not." Emma scurried over and placed a single drop on the baby's forehead. The purplish glow from within the flask spread evenly down Lilly's skin, and she began to glow in Killian's arms.

And she opened her eyes suddenly, staring straight into Emma's, as alive and beautiful as always.

Both the pirate and the savior heaved with relief.

"Do me a favor…" Emma said after she kissed her baby daughter's head. "Take her to Whale for a check up, I'll meet you at Granny's afterwards."

"Where are you going?" He frowned.

She turned smiling. "I have three more people to save… and a family to hug."

Her dashing (and still fully bearded) husband returned the smile. "Aye… savior."

Emma ran off laughing as she made way to Granny's to administer the formula Rumple had recommended.

Killian remained there, staring at his wife as she ran odd, and it wasn't until that moment that he noticed they were clad in their Storybrooke attire, even if they both still looked a year older.

He turned his head to his little girl. "Come on then, love, let's get you checked up by the doctor and then… we can go see your grandparents… again."

"No."

Killian turned an astounded pair of eyes to the child. "Beg your pardon, miss? Since when do you…?"

"Nonono."

He laughed aloud. "That's all you know how to say then? No?" he kissed her hard. "You are a silly little gem, you know that?"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Emma pushed the door of the diner to find a panic scene: Henry was holding Regina's head on his lap on the floor, Belle held Gold and Snow was not just holding on to David's hand… she was breathing rather heavily.

"MOM!" Henry shouted for Emma. "They all just… passed out! I… I don't know… "

"It's ok, kid…" Emma huffed as she went down on the floor and dropped a single doze of the flask on Regina's head. The Queen slowly opened her eyes and fluttered her lashes. Emma smiled and Henry laughed with relief as Emma went one by one, administering the drops of the elixir she had brought from the past Rumple.

As the three stirred awake and upright, Emma turned to Henry. He looked exactly the way she remembered seeing him last, but she nonetheless jumped around his neck, kissing him insanely. "Henry… oh god…" She wept.

"Miss Swan?" Regina sat upright. "You… found a way to close the portal."

"Yeah…" She turned, red-faced and sniffy. "It took us six months to do so."

Henry frowned. "What are you talking about? You were gone for only an hour and…" He eyed her from head to toe. "Mom? Why are you dressed like a bar wench?"

Emma laughed aloud and caressed Henry's hair, teary eyed. "I told you. We were gone a long time." She chuckled. "And just you wait till you see Killian… and your sister…"

David sat up and smiled at Emma. "You did it again!"

Emma rolled over to her parents and hugged them hard. "Mom… dad… I missed you so much!" She cried.

"Oh, Emma…"Snow smiled as she and David embraced their daughter. "What happened?"

Gold had now stood up and walked with astounded interest to Emma as she told the story of their adventure… and it wasn't until Killian came in looking like the bearded Robinson Crusoe, and Lilly looking decidedly older, that everyone believed their tale.

It didn't matter to Emma or Killian. The witch was gone, Lilly was safe, all those affected would live… and they were home.

New York would have to wait for another occasion. Maybe in a very, very distant future. Like, maybe never.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Wait…" Snow smiled as she looked at the book that depicted her daughter and her pirate dancing, sharing vows and defeating the witch. "You actually saw an enchanted Forest ball?" She smiled. "So, a fairy tale princess at last!"

"And a savior, as always…" David chimed in.

"Princess Leia? Nice alias, mom." Henry laughed.

"I was in a pinch." Emma chuckled.

She held Lilly on her lap and the little girl was decidedly trying her luck at climbing on the table. David reached out and touched her hair, to which Lilly responded with a grin and a cackle. "We missed six months of her." He sighed.

Emma reached out and grabbed his arm. "I'm sorry, Dad…"

"Hey!" Snow held Emma's hand. "You went back and did what you had to do to save us all." She smiled. "That's why you're the savior."

Emma sighed and pulled Lilly back on her lap. "Yeah, well… it's not always easy. Wait… no, it never is."

Killian stepped in with a beer in his hand, which looked like he was going to enjoy thoroughly. Emma turned and smiled as she reached out and grabbed his hook.

David laughed quietly. "So, you're auditioning to join Z Z Top or something, Hook?"

The laughing response from the table made Killian huff. "I have no idea what that is, mate, but after we saved your arse, and after what I also believe must have been a snarky remark, I'll have to do the pirate thing and gut you in your sleep." He grinned and sank his thickly mustached beard into the drink. "Oh bloody hell, this is so good."

"The two of you remained together…" Snow smiled.

"Yeah." Emma sighed. "Very much so."

Killian was profoundly engrossed in his beer while Henry took Lilly to play on another empty table. Regina approached and stood by the family. "Emma… " She grinned. "You may never again find that I will have the heart to say this to you, but… thank you."

"Yeah, you do owe me big time, sister." Emma smiled, and upon seeing Regina's confused scorn, she sighed and looked at her. "Trust me. I'll tell you all about it later. By the way… you were kind of scary, you know?"

Regina fidgeted and grinned, looking at the floor. "I am not proud of my past, Miss Swan. But I am proud of what I've done for some people…"She turned her head to Henry. "We all change."

Hook licked his lips. "You just spoke a wheat – picking mouthful, Majesty."

Suddenly Gold approached. "It was the potion of true love…"

Both Killian and Emma turned sharply at him. "Wh… you remember?" Emma frowned. "I thought you said you'd take the potion!"

Gold furrowed his brow. "What ARE you on about, Emma?" He chuckled. "Whatever occurred in your adventure in the past, I have certainly kept no recollection of it. However…" he grinned. "As you well know, I once bottled a potion of true love; from the hair of your mother and father. And I recognize the effects of it. Except this one did not belong to them, so I think it's safe to gather I must have brewed one of you and the pirate." He turned to Hook. "Tell me, Captian.. did I hurt you badly?"

Killian shrugged. "You tried."

"And that is when you turned into Chuck Norris, is it?"

Everyone stifled their laugher again while Killian rolled his eyes. "Right, you lot, I am OFF to shave before any of you bastards takes another jab!" He chuckled as he turned to leave the restaurant. Emma smiled in his direction before turning to her mother. "I think Id better follow Mr. Norris back home." She turned to Henry. "Can you… come stay with us? Please?"

Henry turned to Regina who nodded with a kind grin. She could not deny Emma a thing; and she had missed her son terribly, so she understood.

After a long shower (OH. BLOODY GLORIOUS! GLORIOUS! Was Killian's holler from the shower stall), a delicious dinner made of pizza and coke (THIS IS JUST AWESOME! MAN! JUST AWESOME! Was Emma's retort as she sunk her teeth into the pizza) and a movie (Lilly cried throughout), the little family finally ended their little night… and as Emma and Hook lay in bed, they started to talk about getting out of the B&B and renting one of those apartments Henry had been looking at.

And while everyone slept soundly, Emma toyed with the little ragged ring she had around her finger, with a smile on her face. Killian, looking once again his "devilishly handsome" self, snored quietly as she turned her eyes from the impromptu ring to his face. She simply smiled and whispered a soft I love you as she settled down to rest in his embrace for another night.

A better, more peaceful night, especially knowing this was forever.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Storybrooke slept…

And the sound of a woman suddenly waking up sweating and moaning broke the silence.

"David? David, it's time… please…"


	18. Birthdays

**I DECIDED, FOR THIS CHAPTER, TO GO WITH A FEW HISTORY FEELS AND FAMILY FLUFF, BEFORE WE ONCE AGAIN GO INTO ANGST AND ADVENTURE. EVERYONE NEEDS A LITTLE BREATHER, DON'T YOU THINK? :) ENJOYYYY!**

"I can't be a mother…"

There were times when Emma still woke up in a sweaty frenzy, still feeling what it had been like to hear Henry cry as a newborn… and not even turn to look at her baby son; the ache of knowing she had given him up and that he had grown with the uncertainty of not knowing why (much like she had) would probably haunt her for a long, long time, still.

This time, after her dream, Emma woke early and simply lay there.

Lilly wasn't crying and moments like these were kind of precious, where she could just linger in bed and enjoy at least an extra hour of peace and quiet. She was soothed by the feel of Killian's warmth behind her and the sound of his mild snoring sleep.

It was Henry's birthday today.

She smiled, wondering what they would be doing today. Regina would probably have a plan, but she knew that the Queen-gone-Mayor would not omit Emma from whatever celebration Henry partook.

She sighed deep and rolled to her back with a sigh.

"You know, your blinking makes the noise of an elephant stampede." She giggled the moment she felt Killian staring at her from his side of the bed. She turned to face him with a smile. "You might want to learn to blink quietly."

He smiled and laughed softly. "Just like you, Swan, ruining a man's good fun."

"What's fun about staring at my face?"

He yawned deep before settling back down. "All sailors turn to look at the sun in the morning. Get used to it."

She would never get used to his compliments. That way they'd always be as endearing as they always were. So she simply grinned and turned her face back to the ceiling.

"So…" He spoke softly. "What odd and wily adventure have you in mind for us today, Swan?"

She sighed. "Oh… It's Henry's birthday."

He was wide-eyed. "Well! Good form, we should celebrate. Will he be with us or with Regina?"

She turned to her side completely, facing him. "I have to call her, she probably has a plan."

"Have you?"

She smiled. "Since when do I ever plan anything?"

"Aye, point taken, love." He chuckled as he leaned in for a soft good morning kiss. "Nevertheless, he deserves at least a proper bequest." He frowned. "I might have just the thing…" he looked at her. "How old is he today, Emma?"

"Thirteen."

"Aye, he's of good age now."

She gave him a mock warning stare. "You're not… planning to take my son "wenching" as some sort of rite of passage into adulthood, are you?"

Killian laughed aloud. "Well, it crossed my mind, but alas, there are no 'wenches' in Storybrooke. No, my idea was of a more… material nature." He stepped out of bed and went into one of the inner pockets of his (now rarely worn) leather trench coat. "I found this… in Gold's Shop. It should stir memories from you, love…" He walked back to her and placed the heavy object in Emma's hand.

"Wh… the compass!" she gasped and smiled at him. "Where did you find this?"

"Gold's shop."

"Like everything else…"

He shrugged.

her cell phone rang and Emma turned to pick it up, accidentally tapping on the speaker button. "Hello?"

"Hey, mom?"

"Hey lad! We were just talking about you!" Killian smiled at the phone. "Many happy returns on this day, m'boy!"

"Happy birthday, kid!" Emma also grinned.

"And, to you as well, mom! Hey, are you guys going to come for the party?"

Killian's brow was pinched as he looked at Emma with a mild scorn. She blushed in return. "Err… Yeah… yeah of course we are! We even have a gift for you already!"

"So cool! I can't seem to get in touch with Gramps and Grandma, maybe you can try! They can't miss it!"

"We'll quite certainly find them, Henry." Killian affirmed. "But for now, we shall hang up so your mother and I can continue planning what we'll do for HER natal day. We will see you later, all right?"

"Great Killian! Thanks! And mom? Really, happy birthday to you too!"

"Thank you, Henry…"

The line went dead.

Emma once again felt Killian's stare, expecting an explanation. "Swan?" He spoke. "This is YOUR day of birth as well?"

"Erm… yeah." She nodded shyly.

"Seriously, my love, why did you not tell me this?" he moaned. "I could have arranged for something…"

"No, really you don't…"

"Yes I do!" He affirmed. "Really, Emma, why would I even WANT to skip over this date?"

Emma sighed and started talking to him about a couple of interesting stories…

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

She was twenty-eight today. She had just chased and hunted down some low-life (yet another; Why, weren't they all?) and delivered him to the hands of his ex wife's lawyers to pony up and pay back the cash she had lovingly invested his bail just so he could run like the wind.

Asshole.

She stopped by the sweet Cupcakes Shop at Charles and picked up a single chocolate and vanilla cream muffin and a candle to celebrate yet another lonely birthday. But she'd celebrate it regardless (because there was always this little voice in the back of her head that told her to always, always hang on to hope).

As she lit the candle on the muffin and leaned her arms on the counter, she closed her eyes, and remembered a time, a time in jail, her 18th birthday…

"_Neal…" She sobs in her single cell cot, running her hand over her voluminous tummy, at three am on the morning of her birthday. "Why Neal? I loved you… Why?"_

_CLANG CLANG CLANG, sounded the bars from the cell across her own. "Swan! Will you put a cork in it? We're trying to get some sleep, here!"_

_She continued sobbing, curled on her side, feeling heavy and fat and ugly and lonely._

_Especially lonely._

_The harsh sounds from her cellmates were suddenly heard._

"_If you didn't wanna get knocked up you shouldn't have spread 'em so easily!"_

"_You do know condoms exist, right?"_

"_Shut the fuck up, blondie!"_

"_Swan, just fart that kid out and get it over with so you can let us all sleep!"_

"_I'm-a-whoop your ass tomorrow, Emma!"_

_And then… a sudden, painful tug stopped her from crying, only to explode into screaming…. Her water had broken._

_By the time the sun had risen, she had delivered a perfectly healthy little boy, amidst the flickering lights of the clinic that seemed to simply blow out together with her pain, almost like…. magic. A little boy, which, gave away immediately, her heart shattered, if at all possible, even more than ever. _

_Happy eighteenth birthday, Emma Swan._

She kept her eyes closed and the mild flicker of the candle on the muffin shone through her eyelids as she sighed deep. "Another banner year. Bring 'em on…" She sighed. "Like I didn't have a friggin' heart." She grinned and felt a tear trickle down the outer corner of her left eye and down her cheek, onto the counter. "Happy birthday, kid, wherever you are… I love you."

So, wishing with all her soul that she wouldn't have to spend another birthday all alone, remembering the day she gave her child away, she blew her candle.

And two seconds later, there was a tap on the door.

Life had just delivered back into her arms the little boy she had given away; just like that. He forgave her, he always would. Maybe she'd never forgive herself, but yeah he had. And he wanted her to come home with him and do what she was born to do. It was, after all, his birthday wish that he'd find his real mom.

That year, both Emma Swan and Henry Mills got their birthday wishes, for the first time. And it would not be the last.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Very well, having heard the misery of your past, the reason you omit your own birthday is…?" Killian shrugged.

Emma made a very deliberate effort not to cry. "After doing what I did, why would I even want to celebrate my own existence? I stopped celebrating after Henry showed up again." she huffed. "I'm not worth it."

At the sound of her words, Killian felt as if someone had punched him in the gut. He sat upright as if he had been touched with a cattle prod, and glared at her sternly. "Emma, this is the last time I ever want to hear such vile utterance about the woman I love, are we clear on that?"

"Wow. Who got YOUR knickers in a twist?" She sneered.

He ran a hand through his hair. "Swan, you made… a bloody… mistake, all right?"

"No!" she sat up as well. "Missing a cero when you're balancing a checkbook is a mistake. Taking the fall for a theft when your partner is gonna disappear and leave you in jail and… pregnant, that is also a mistake. But giving my son away when he was born, knowing what I knew about being an orphan? Knowing how it would hurt in places one doesn't even know are there? That's not a mistake, that's just… selfishness and cowardice!" She swallowed and the tears that she had tried so hard to fight flooded her eyes. "I was eighteen, Killian, I wasn't stupid! I could have kept Henry, but I didn't because I was just so scared! I'm a coward…" She sobbed. "I know you think it's stupid, I know, maybe it is, you wouldn't understand…"

Killian threw the compass on the mattress hard enough to make Emma turn to him.

"WHAT THE HELL!"

"Do you seriously believe you were the only bloody orphan in the world, Swan?" He hollered angrily. "Gods know I love you, Emma, but your self pity is seriously beyond anything I had ever imagined it could be!" He paced. "So we were orphaned and abandoned, so we wear some scars over those situations… for the love of all that is sacred Emma, they are scars and nothing else! Aren't we grown enough to be over those? Did you learn nothing from me not letting go off the past?" He huffed, hand and hook on his hips. "Wasn't it you who said you were tired of living in the past?" he walked to her and cradled her face in his hand, cleaning the tears with his thumb as he toned down his voice. "Look, love: when you cling on to that thought, that terrible memory, you forsake all other things you've done right. You have Henry now! And Lilly? I was in awe of her when I found you, darling; you'd done so well. I have crossed realms and time to remain at your side, Emma… are you going to seriously try to persuade me into believing the ludicrous notion that you are not 'worth it'? You've a son that looks up to you, a daughter who fills you with daily joy, a man who dotes on your very existence, parents who have waited YEARS to have you back and that love you tremendously… you have saved innumerable lives… and you're 'not worth it'?" he huffed and caressed her hair. "You don't ever get to say that again, and even more so, actually believe it."

She stared into his cerulean eyes and sighed. "You drive a hard bargain, Killian Jones."

"I'm not bargaining on this, Swan." He shook his head.

She sighed and looked down. "Ok… I'll let you… celebrate me." She grinned, wrinkling her nose in that way she knew he adored.

"I was going to, my love, with or without your approval." He sighed hard. "Now…" He caressed her cheeks with a grin and looked into her eyes. "Happy birthday, Emma."

She smiled and held him back.

"Thank you."

"Silly woman… now I've nothing to regale you with. Had you told me…"

Emma sighed and tilted her head to a side, looking at him from underneath her brow. "There is one thing I can think of that you can … _regale_ me with…"

"Oh…" He whispered. "Well, I don't need it to be your birthday for that, sweetheart, but I suppose that in view of the circumstances…" He shrugged. "I suppose I'll have to do."

He took a leap back into the bed.

Forty minutes later, Emma lay beside him, her cheek pressed against the soft brush of hair of his chest, as he rubbed circles on her back with his handless wrist.

"How was it for you?" Emma sighed

"Hmm?"

"You said, 'we'… 'We were orphaned and abandoned.' I heard you."

He shrugged. "Aye, what of it?"

She looked up at him. "Tell me… Tell me about you."

Killian exhaled though his nose. "All right…"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

He was seven years old.

Three final teeth had finally fallen from their gums and he displayed an adorably black-toothed grin. His hair was long and just as unruly, and his eyes still looked huge for his tiny face.

He resembled his mother… with the eyes of his father.

Alas, he was the bastard child of a bar girl who had been manhandled, off all people, by Davy Jones. Everyone knew the name… everyone feared it. And wee Killian bore his mother's looks, but lo, his father's ocean blue orbs.

A curse and a gift, it was said.

Amelia Evans, the sweet young girl who had bore him at fifteen, had perished minutes after little Killian had come to be, her parting gift with her son, her sole possession of any value: Her silver ring.

When the infamous Captain returned to the ports, like he often did to reload the Flying Dutchman with rum, he heard of a scrawny yet angelic child with eyes bluer than the deepest ocean cove, the product of a drunken binge where he had cornered an innocent bargirl to quench his cravings. And for a brief moment, he felt pity on the lad.

He took him onboard the Dutchman and sailed.

For two years, the boy learned the ways of the ship, the songs of the pirates aboard… and his father seemed to be pleased with his presence on the Dutchman… until the Armada finally caught up with the vessel and they had to flee early before dawn one day.

Little Killian Jones had been sleeping at an Inn when his Da came in, touched his wee head, and spoke to him: "M'boy, one day, you too shall sail the seven seas and all the realms, your spirit shall soar independently from all others and no one, hear me, no one will hold you to their standards and desires. You shall take what you please when you please."

"I will be a pirate… like you, Da." He smiled back at his father from his little bed.

"Aye, lad. That you shall. Now for this night, rest. You will need your sleep for the journey ahead."

Killian closed his eyes and slept, a confident grin on his lips, dreaming of ports and beaches, sails, the sound of seagulls and bells from the buoys bobbing merrily near the coasts.

It was the sound of buoys that woke the lad to find the black silhouette of The Flying Dutchman, sailing away into the horizon, large enough for Killian to see through his tears, and too small to even think he had any chance of catching up.

Davy Jones had been correct: He needed all he had in him for the journey ahead of him.

Now abandoned and hungry, Killian took at first to begging. He had somehow adapted a little hole under a bridge, in a stone hole, where he'd fight every night against the cold, the rats and the dampness from the tide that barely reached his toes. People sneered at the sight of him, scrawny, weak and toothless, and he often felt the sharp end of boots on his body.

He had developed a nasty cough and fever when, one night, another swanky and tall figure dragged him from the hole under the bridge.

He woke up in a monastery, cared for by some good brothers, with the face of what looked like another boy, older but not quite a man, who smiled as soon as the little boy's eyes fluttered open. "Sleep, little brother…" He whispered. "You've quite a way to go still…"

He slept again, unused of what he had heard and thinking, perhaps, he was dreaming. Or the fever?

At fifteen, Liam Jones was an apt pickpocket and stable boy. He managed to make ends meet, a far luckier outcome of another of Davy Jones's dalliances. His mother had lived and raised him until her recent demise. So when in his daily wanderings, he heard though the waterways at the docks that a small, sad little Jones offspring lay dying in the gutters, he swiftly found him and nursed him to his health, with the aid of the men at the monastery.

It took Killian Jones six weeks to recover, and another two months to talk. But all through that time, Liam Jones was at his side. On one occasion, the taller, older brother held him during a stormy night, caressing his little head as tears ran down his wee face. "There, there, lad. Tis only rain and thunder. No monsters lay beneath your bed, and if there were, I shall scare them off. Shhh, sleep now, lad. Sleep."

Killian hardly slept. What if, like his father, he woke to find this wonderful young man gone? But then, he never left. So slowly, he managed to find the peace of knowing that he had someone… that he wasn't alone to face and fight the world.

The first time Killian talked to his brother, was to say his name.

"Killian…" The older boy smiled as he shook his little hand. "My name is Liam, and I'm your brother, little one. I am so, so pleased to meet you. At last."

The Jones brothers became inseparable; Killian quickly learned how to pick a pocket, being so small and thin, and was practically undetectable as he did so. The brothers managed to steal enough thick fabric to make a tent in the nearby woods, which sheltered them from snowfalls and rain, and there was nothing that would stop them from living… till one day Liam Jones was caught… and condemned to hang for thievery.

Killian's plight then became to find a way not to let fate once again rip his only family from him… and he did so by resourcefully holding the hand of what looked like a sea Captain that had docked a marvelous vessel the day before. The man, named Captain Wellings, found it impossible to shag off the hand of the little boy, intil he finally went down on his knees, asking the child why on earth he was holding on to his hand so fervently.

With very sincere tears in his eyes, Killian spoke of his plight… their plight. And did not omit the fact that he and his brother were the sons of Davy Jones, captain of the Flying Dutchman… whom Captain Wellings himself had just sunk in recent days.

With the burden of gazing into the eyes of Jones' orphan boy (and yes, he'd seen those eyes as they had gone under the waters of the realm's ocean), Wellings, who was enormously kind-hearted and always walked on the paths of good form, accepted the boy's pleas and was the one to post bail for Liam, in exchange for the boys' services on the deck of the Jewel of the Realm. Not a year later, they were separated again, but Killian was well, working the decks and tending to the sailors, while Liam was accepted into the academy. A year later, Killian too was a navy cadet.

The rest of their lives together, the Jones' plight became one of fighting against the reputation behind their name. And had succeeded when, at twenty one, Killian made lieutenant, and Liam, at thirty, captain, the youngest and most respectable young naval officers. Liam was known for his stern good form and his strict but kind leadership, while Killian's navigating skills and bladesmanship were unparalleled.

So it wasn't until the death of Liam Jones that Killian's dark side finally took a hold of his life… and dwell in it he did… for three hundred years.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Emma stared at his profile as he narrated his story, unblinked tears in her eyes. He turned to her, dry-eyed but sorrowful, and smiled at the look on her face.

"It's ok, Swan… it's in the past. And you know…" He turned on his side, to face her. "If I had to do it to be the man I am today… I'd do it." He pouted with a shrug. "Whenever I think of myself as unworthy, I just think of what I have done. Would an unworthy man have lived thus? Survived? Made a life for himself? Liam saved me, he gave me the chance to live… who would I have been to fail him, hm?" He caressed her face. "We all have our past, darling, and…"

"No…" Emma shook her head. "I swear., I'll never, ever complain about being raised in the system again, Killian. My story was bad, but yours is pretty damn gothic…"

He laughed softly. "Aye… it was that, every bit. But, I have to say, there were plenty of good bits in between the darkness. Even after Milah, in Neverland, there were evenings where I'd lie on the deck of the Roger and I'd stare at the stars. At least that much my father got right: My spirit is free. I'm a bit of a wanderlust man, and all these travels were, I have to say, adventures that I wouldn0t trade for ten pots of gold. And now…" he grinned. "Now we're here. I've anchored. I'm home. Now Swan… He leaned in and kissed her forehead. "Do you still think you're not worth it?"

Damn pirate. Damn him, curse him. She had never loved him more.

She simply smiled and snuggled in as he embraced her in his warmth. "So… happy birthday, my love…"

"Yeah. Thanks. The happiest ever."

After a few seconds, the peaceful embrace was interrupted by an eerie noise stemming from outside the door.

Frowning, Killian stood up and reached for his clothing. "Did you leave the door open, Emma?"

"No…" she pouted, also gingerly reaching for her pajamas.

Killian reached for his cutlass. "Stay here, love."

"In your dreams…"

with Killian at the front and Emma tiptoeing behind him, they stepped out of the room and past "Bloody hell, it's in there…" He tilted his head to the bathroom. "Where's Lilly?"…" Killian spoke through pressed lips.

"Oh god, I didn't check…" She whispered.

"Wait…" He whispered back as he peeked one eye into the bathroom door, where the noises came from.

When he turned back to her, he was trying to stifle laughter. "S… Swan…"

Her heaving relief was quickly replaced by curiosity. "What…" she pushed past him and opened the door… to find Lilly, sitting in the bath tub, her face covered with cream and talcum powder, black lines from her father's eye kohl smeared on her hands and nose and with her little pajamas soaked from having opened the tap. The bathroom was a powdery mess.

And Emma didn't even want to think how the hell she had reached the cabinet above the sink.

Swan's mouth fell open as Lilly held out the powder puff to her. "Mama…" she smiled.

"REALLY?" Emma gasped, while Killian's laughter would probably be heard a mile around. When she turned to look at the pirate, he had slid to the floor with his back against the wall, and was quite literally having trouble breathing through his hysterical laughter which, Emma was amused to discover, was incredibly high pitched in contrast to his deep, husky voice.

She turned back to her daughter, smiling. "And it walks…" She sighed as she turned off the tap.. "Oh, god, Lilly! Look at you!" She looked at the bathroom. "Granny's gonna have our livers…" She sneered as she picked the little girl up. "Oh, man you're soaked!"

Lilly looked at her mother and pressed the puff against Emma's cheek twice. "Puff puff", she giggled; the sound of her giggles alone had Emma laughing hard soon enough. "This you take from your father, not from me…" She sighed smiling.

She then heard Killian catching his breath behind her as he touched her shoulder and kissed Lilly's talcum-filled hair. "You bloody little pirate!" He cackled as the Little girl also puffed his face with the puff ball.

"Here…" emma handed her over to her father, still smiling, "See what you can do about the black hands and nose, I'll clean up this mess…"

"Aye..." He smiled and then, grabbed Emma by the arm. She turned to him and was amused to find tears of laughter still clinging to his lashes. "Not worth it?" he quipped with that adoring, challenging smirk she remembered from their Neverland kiss.

She smiled back. "Worth… every… second."

And then the phone rang as Killian struggled to clan the blackness from his daughter's kohl smears.

After talking, he ran to Emma who was busy trying to collect talcum dust from the toilet seat. "Love?" He smiled.

"Yeah…" She huffed busily.

"You'll never believe this… but there's another birthday now to celebrate…"

Emma turned swiftly to Killian and as realization sank, a smile appeared on her face. "My mom…"

He smiled and joined to hug her on the floor. "So, it seems you are a sister now, my love… Of a healthy little boy." He kissed her cheek. "Congratulations, Swan."


	19. Little Big Magic

Neal was born, oddly, on the same day as Emma and Henry had. It almost seemed fated.

It was still odd for Emma to know she was the sister of a brand new baby boy at thirty, but hey, _curses do that to ya._ It wasn't any more unreal than her being married to Captain Hook of Peter Pan fame, or her mother being Snow White and Prince Charming of Grimm Brothers fame. Her life was just a huge mess… a huge, wonderful, unusual and unique mess.

That was no family tree: It was a family ivy.

Much as she wanted to help her mother out, Lilly was becoming a handful and was taking most of Emma's time, to the point where she was still on leave from the sheriff's office. She was growing at an unbelievable rate and the time for running after her like a zombie, bent over and arms held out, had arrived. And given her parentage, Lilly was no sweet, coy, quiet little girl: She was a total go-getter (Emma and Hook were still trying to figure out how she managed to climb up the sink to get cream, talcum powder and kohl liner without slipping and hitting her head), who apparently loved to make her mother and father flinch at any given second. She had a loud-as-life giggle and had somehow started to manage doing that funny eyebrow thing that was such a trademark of her father.

Yeah. She was a little pirate. And no little pirate in the world had ever been so loved.

And then it happened.

It was during a family breakfast. Killian had somehow secured a position in Storybrooke as Harbour Master and pretty much ran the show there; since the day Cora had turned the previous harbor master into a fish, no one had really tended properly to Storybrooke's coast. Killian had quickly learned how to operate a radio and was actually pretty pleased with speedboats. He offered Smee a job as Coast Guard under his supervision and often delighted in speed boating through the coasts. Like the Jolly Roger on steroids! So that particular Sunday he had to train three new recruits in the arts of watching the horizon, learning to look beyond the line where the sea meets the sky and basic sailing concepts. Emma and Lilly met up with her mom and dad at the loft, where Lilly was delighted with the little newborn prince Neal and couldn't keep her eyes off of him.

"So…" Snow smiled as she rocked the baby side to side from the kitchen. "How's life chasing the little Jones dynamo?"

Emma sighed and took her index finger to the dark shade beneath her left eye. "See these?" Snow raised booth brows and emma nodded. "Yeah. And I think I might be developing early back problems too."

Snow laughed and turned as David took the baby from her and took the seat beside his wife "Well, it's only been a week and I'm starting to wonder what life was like while I was able to sleep." He sat with a huff.

"Nevertheless, I would have loved to raise you, Emma." Snow sighed. "I know it must be awkward and you must feel that Neal gets a break you didn't get, but I…"

"Hey, hey!" Emma smiled. "I never even thought that, ok? Let's just take this one with a small doze of "chill mother", I swear I'm good..." Lilly climbed on the table, reaching her little hand to try and touch Neal. "Now, be gentle, honey... gently… gently…" Lilly looked at her mother and quirked her little eyebrow up, before turning to her little uncle and just caressing his forehead. "You had to get that silly eyebrow trick from your father, didn't you? Sassy little monster..." Emma smiled as Lilly sat back down on her lap.

Snow grinned and turned to the stove. "Are we expecting Killian any time soon?"

"Nope, or Henry either. Killian's got a course today, he's training some new guys to work at the docks and Henry has a…. date."

"What?" Snow turned.

"What?" David looked up.

Emma nodded. "Yep."

"Who is she?" snow asked, wide-eyed.

"Not a clue."

David furrowed hos brow. "You mean your son is seeing a woman and you as his mother have no clue who she is?"

Emma rolled her eyes. "Ok, first off, he's twelve; he's only taken the girl to the arcade; second, hell no! I'm not that kind of overbearing mother…"

"Down, down, down!" Lilly cried.

"Hey young lady! What's the magic word?" Emma reprimanded.

Lilly did another eyebrow thing and grinned his dad's best Neverland "kiss me" smile. "Pleez."

Emma kissed her head and put her down, following her until she saw her sit on the floor where her toys were. Emma turned with a grin to see David shaking his head. "And, it had to be the pirate…" He chuckled.

"You know…" Emma giggled, "…the other day we got out of bed to find her in the bathtub? She was drenched, covered in cream and talcum powder and had graffitied her face with Killian's kohl liner."

Snow snorted a giggle. "PLEASE tell me you got a photo of that!"

"Killian took one of her before he cleaned her up. " she turned to David. "He loves the iPhone, by the way."

"Smart phone for dummies…" He smirked.

Emma chuckled again. "You won't give the guy a break, will you?"

David smiled a ridiculously silly grin. "Nnnnnope."

Just then, a truck passing outside blew it's exhaust pipe and Lilly jumped, startled. And not two seconds later, she began to pout and whimper, before breaking into a full-blown cry.

"Oh, sweetie…" Emma turned and reached for the crying little girl, picking her up. "It was just a truck!"

Then Lilly held on to her mother and drew breath to scream amid her anguished tears… and as she did, every lit up light bulb in the loft suddenly exploded with a sparky showdown.

Snow yelped, David jumped up with his boy in his arms and Emma turned around, eyes wide as dinner plates. "Ok, what the HELL happened?"

Snow pressed a hand to her chest and turned, aghast, to Emma. "I… think she did it!" She looked at er granddaughter with two astounded dinner plate eyes before looking back into Emma's.

Lilly continued crying, still startled and upset. She screamed again… and the three tea mugs on the table cracked and spilled the red berry tea they were enjoying from the table to the floor.

"Good god!" David growled. "Emma, calm her down, quick!"

"Lilly, honey? Shhh… shhh." Emma rushed to console her, lest she set light to a couch or something.

The little girl began to whimper and rubbed her teary eyed face, looking decidedly grouchy now as Emma turned an anguished face to her parents. "I think she's ready for a nap. And after that, we might just need to go over this once more… or I should… maybe… whatever." she walked upstairs with Lilly to set her down for a nap while Snow cleaned up the mess made by the cups and David changed the light bulbs, all in a dazed silence.

When Emma came back down, she had a hand over her mouth. Little Neal was sleeping in the bassinette Lilly ha handed him down on the living room couch.

"She's asleep now." Emma huffed as she sat on the table, rubbing her temples with both hands. "Jesus Christ, what the hell just happened?"

"Emma…" Snow whispered, sitting. "Can Lilly… do things?"

Emma raised her eyes to her mother and was about to say it was all news to her, when she recalled her befuddlement as to how the tiny tot reached for cream, talcum and kohl from the cabinet over the sink. She was barely able to walk, let alone climb up the toilet and sink like a human little mountain goat!

That explained a lot.

"Well, if she can, she doesn't know it… which makes it all a bit more… dangerous." She turned to David, wide-eyed. "She could accidentally set light to the bed while she's sleeping, or something!"

Snow shook her head. "Regina would know what to do…"

"Or Gold." David added.

Emma nodded and huffed. "Yeah… yeah they might. Dammit…" She huffed and sat back on her chair, running both hands through her long strands for blond hair. "I'm thirty one and I can't even harness my OWN magic properly, how is she ever…?"

"We will help you." Snow nodded and reached out over the table. Emma also extended her hand and grinned a sad grin at her mother. "She's still a toddler, she will learn in time."

"And if she doesn't? If she grows up to be some sort of… dark sorceress or something like that?"

"Emma!" Snow gasped.

"I can't… I…" Emma shook her head.

David held the hands of both his girls. "What is it, Emma? What's really bothering you?"

She sighed. "When I was in the group home, I'd often seek refuge in Mrs. Bailey's apartment. It was like… the typical little old lady's room with loads of stuff to play with… pearl strings and beads, old hats, big dresses, an old closet cabinet that seemed bottomless…" She shook her head nostalgically. "But the reason I'd go there was because I had kind of… noticed something was wrong with me. I was running. Even then."

"Wrong with you?" Snow pressed her lips together and shook her head. "You mean, your magic also…?"

"Yeah. I mean, I know what it is now, but when I was five, I had no idea. And I kind of…" she bit her lower lip and winced. "I kind of burned a girl with hot soup. MY hot soup. She was the playground bully and she took my ration of soup and… I just sort of imagined myself throwing it on her face, so I let her have it, then I flicked my hand and… Boom." She huffed and covered her face with both hands. "She was ok, she had minor burns. And for a while, no one knew. No one could make the association, how could they? I hadn't even touched the bowl. But then one day I also shouted at a teacher and… well…" She signaled her hand to the lamps that a while ago had burst their bulbs. "That."

"You blew the lights?" David enquired.

"Yeah." Emma replied softly. "I was seven."

Snow shrugged. "Well… you and Killian are kind of… true love, right?"

"Yeah."

"So the savior is the product of true love… what happens when the product of true love begets a child, who is ALSO the product of true love?" David side grinned. "Maybe Lilly will be…"

"The next savior!" Sno smiled.

"Oh, hell no! No, no, no!" Emma stood up and paced. "Please don't tell me my daughter's gonna have to spend most of her adult life going through portals and slaying dragons and breaking curses and…"

"Marrying pirates?" Snow winked.

"Yeah, marrying pi… wait." She turned back to her parents. "You guys know?"

David shook his head. "We're not stupid, Emma. You spent six months away with the guy and believe me, the kind of intimacy you two have reached?" he winked at her. "That's marriage…"

"Not to mention the romantic little piece of cloth around your finger under the huge blue rock Killian gave you!" Snow smiled. "I'm your mother, Emma. You can't get past me."

Emma sat back down. "You're not… upset?" She winced. "I mean, it was my idea, and he IS a captain and… well, we didn't know if we'd ever be back at all and…"

"Emma!" David held a hand out.

"Yeah…?"

He and Snow exchanged a wry smile. "Well, we kind of… wanted to surprise you with this when you got married, but since you two decided to elope and honeymoon for six months in the past, well, we might as well…"

"It was going to be our wedding present for you and Killian." Snow nodded with a grin.

"You guys…" Emma pleaded. "I'm sorry, I know this means a whole lot to you, and I swear I wanted it too, but with us alone and stuck in the past, I…"

"You guys are a family now, Emma." Snow cut in again. "You can't continue living in a room in Granny's B&B, so…" she turned to David.

The prince smiled and sighed. "Henry showed me the apartment he thought you'd like, by the beach. So…" he shrugged. "We bought it for you."

"You two can make your home there now." Snow smiled.

Emma's eyes went from Snow's to David's and back to Snow's. "You… bought us a… condo?"

"Yep." David nodded. "Great view of the sea from both master suite and second room."

The savior was far too shocked to even cry. "I… don't know what to say…"

Snow laughed lightly and stood up, walking around the table to hold Emma's head to her chest, kissing her on her blond mane. "Just take it. We're your parents and in a weird, skewed sort of way…" She sighed with a crooked grin. "…we're also Killian's now." She laughed an eerie cackle. "Now THAT is strange, but hey…"

"You guys deserve better… and so do our grandchildren." David nodded.

Emma grinned. "You guys… I…" She stood up smiling and hugged both her parents hard. "I love you guys. I really do…"

"No more hiding out in Mrs. Bailey's room." Snow sighed.

When Emma broke the hug her eyes glistened and she had a grand smile on her face that showed how far she0'd come from an orphan who thought she'd never amount to a thing, to a daughter, a wife, a mother, a sheriff and a hero… with an apartment of her own.

"So…" She sniffed. "How about… we ALL take Lilly to see Regina or Gold, we call Killian... and we go see that apartment!"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"So…" Gold placed both hands on his cane. "To what do I owe the pleasure of seeing not one, but ALL the Charmings in my humble place of business?" He grinned coyly. And it never ceased to amaze Emma how Rumplestiltskin could make a perfectly courteous greeting sound so cutting and sharp it chilled the marrow of her bones.

Every time.

"It's… my daughter." Emma swallowed and looked at her daughter, still sleeping, as she cradled her in her arms.

"The pirate princess, yes, what about her?"

Emma swallowed. "I think… she's got magic…"

That got a quirked brow line from Gold. "I see. And why should that concern me?"

Belle walked into the shop. "Rumple, really…" She reached for Lilly's little hand. "Hello there, Lilly Jones, how are you today?"

Lilly smiled a tongue biting little grin before blushing and hiding her face on her mom's chest.

"We will help you determine the nature of her magic, Emma. Don't worry." She turned to her husband. "Won't we, Rumple?"

The man huffed and grinned coldly. "Well, why not? Seeing as to the fact that even the pirate and I are now kin three times removed, I fail to see how this particular little quest could do any harm. All for the family…"

Again… _colder than a corpse_, Emma thought.

He turned the key from his cabinet and produced a tiny vial.

"What's that?" David asked.

"A very basic potion there, highness." Rumple replied as he twirled the contents of the bottle in his hand. "Serves as a contrast. We need a drop of the child's blood and a drop of this… and should it glow pink, it means she's got magic. If she does not, them it shan´t glow at all. Now… " He paced to the little girl and produced a tiny needle. "May I?"

Emma pulled Lilly closer to her, before relaxing. She hated the idea of blood being drawn from her daughter, but if it was needed…

"There there…" Rumple spoke to Lilly. "How are we today, little miss Lilly?" he flicked his hand and a large, colorful, twirling lollypop appeared in his hand. "You see this?"

Lilly didn't nod or puff or make any other sign aside from staring at the candy like it were the holy grail of all candies.

"You want it, I see… well, I'll give you it, if… you are brave." He reached for her little hand while Lilly wasn't even looking, and pricked her finger. Immediately the child gasped and screamed before she erupted into crying… and every glass cabinet in the shop shattered.

Everyone flinched; Gold turned his head around and it was plain to see even the mighty Dark One was shocked.

"Here, here!" Rumple took her little hand for the droplet of blood as he handed her the lollypop. Within seconds, Lilly had simmered down and had grabbed the candy with her free hand.

So much for the futility of pains and aches in childhood. In Storybrooke, they'd just break every glass counter there.

While Lilly indulged in her larger-than-life-lollipop, Rumple twirled the tiny vial. "I think, after this display, it is already safe to say the child has quite the unharnessed power. Nonetheless, let's see…"

And from his shocked frown, Emma knew this was not just ordinary magic: The bottle didn't glow pink… it glowed a bright red that lit up the entire room.

"Really?" Emma shook her head.

The Dark One turned to the little girl in black pigtails who had already made a huge sticky mess of her face with the candy. "Emma… this is no common sorcery." He looked into her eyes. "This child will make changes… big changes." He licked his lips. "Her magic will be unparalleled, even to me. It is vital to steer her in the right direction, lest she use it for things that do not serve the better good."

"This.. coming from the dark One…" Snow sighed. "She's little over one year old, how can she ever..?"

"She will control it by the time she's 3."

"Oh, perfect, by then she could have very well burst every power generator in Storybrooke!" Emma turned her head.

"No, Savior…" Rumple grinned. "With your guidance she will be able to control it before it gets to that. I'd wager that by the time she's four, she'll be as powerful as Regina… and by the time she's ten, well, let's just say I may have met my match."

The sudden weight of responsibility for Lilly's unbelievable power suddenly landed on Emma's shoulders like a ton of bricks. She swallowed (Gulped. Loud.) and turned her eyes from under brows at Gold. "Is there anything you can give her to remove it?"

Even Belle gasped.

"Why yes, there is, Emma, just as easy as it would be to remove her liver!" Rumple replied with a cold grin. "Now hear this, Miss Swan… the fact that you live in constant denial of your own magical prowess does not mean there aren't others who can harness it, control it and use it with skill. Magic is a part of who you are, and you will never be rid of it. Your daughter, I fear, has magic of a powerful, white nature: True love, multiplied. Why would you want to rip the very core of her soul away like that?"

"Emma, no one will consider her a freak here…2 snow placed a hand on her shoulder. "This is Storybrooke, remember?"

The young mother sighed and nodded. "Yeah. How can I forget?" She sighed deep. "Thank you mister Gold." She turned and walked out with her family, barely hearing the sarcasm-loaded and yet terribly courteous farewell from Rumplestiltskin.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Killian?" Emma paced along the wooden pier, turning her head in different directions; she found him looping a large rope around his arm and shoulder before looking up the mast of a boat and tugging to bring down the sail.

The Captain at his finest.

"Hey!" She yelled again and smiled when he turned to them with and equally large smile. He paced to them after securing the sails.

"Well, what an extremely pleasant surprise!" He reached them both and after a courteous kiss on Emma's lips, he turned to his daughter. "And just how is my wee little pirate lady doing this morrow, then?"

Emma sighed deep and it was easy for Killian to figure out she had a bee in her bonnet that needed prompt squashing.

"Very well, Swan, what is it? Is it large and toothy or made of ice, or does it breathe fire?"

"Ugh…" Emma handed the baby over to him as she continued to ravage her candy pop. "Worse. Your daughter has magic."

Killian frowned. "Wha… how do you know this?" he turned to look at his daughter who simple made pretty little eyes before once again licking her candy. "Did she do something?"

"Well, so far, she's busted six light bulbs, three cups and every cabinet in Gold's Pawn Shop, for starters. Given she's not even two, I have reason to believe she might just… get even more powerful as she grows…"

Killian stared at Emma intently before a smile slowly rose on his lips and a happy laugh made its way to his throat as he lifted the baby up with a grin. "So, my little one's a witch, like her mother! Why, will you help daddy hoist those sails then, little darling? After all he only has one hand and he…"

His smile disappeared as the sails on the next little barge hoisted themselves up… by themselves. Emma looked at Lilly, her mouth gaping, and saw how the baby had her stare fixed on the mast… and her little tongue still glued to the candy.

Killian took two steps back. Jawslacked, his gaze shifted from the sales back to his daughter. "Cor… bloody flaming hell…"

The little one went back to her absent-minded licking.

"So THAT'S how she got the cream and talcum…" Emma bit her lip.

The pirate looked at the child in his arms who didn0t even seem to bother looking back at her father if it meant pulling her eyes off of her candy. In her mind, she'd done her share to help him. And again, a now smaller but very affectionate smile rose on his lips as he mussed the fringe from her little face. "You're quite the little thing, my sweet pea…" He looked at Emma. "Didn't even know she knew what hoisting a sail meant."

Emma tugged down the sweater that had climbed up a little up her back. "According to Gold, she's a bit of a tour de force…"

"How so?"

"I quote him: "By the time she's three she'll be as powerful as Regina, and by the time she's ten, I'll have met my match."

Killian gulped audibly.

"We have our hands full pirate."

He sighed and hugged the baby girl in his arms. "Aye Swan, that we do. But, I have full confidence that her mother and I will stir her properly." He grinned. "Now, what do you say we go look at some possible choices for housing?"

Emma smiled. "Oh that's… another thing…" she took two steps to him and put her hands in his back trouser pockets. "Let me tell you about this apartment that henry saw in the paper…"


	20. Rain is life

**BROMANCE FEELS AND DRAMA. YES. ALL AHEAD! TOO MUCH FLUFF CAN EVENTUALLY BE BORING, SO WE NEED A LITTLE DRAMA HERE.**

**I FIND IT HARD TO BELIEVE (ALBEIT AWESOME AND VERY ENCOURAGING) THAT I'M CLOSE TO 200 FOLLOWS, WITH 100 FAVORITES AND SO OS SO MANY WONERFUL REVIEWS! YOU GUYS ARE MAKING MY HEART SOAR! BIG LOVE TO ALL!**

Three taps on the door woke David from a very pleasant Sunday morning dream that involved Snow, a see-through silk blanket and blueberry cheesecake. It was a very welcome dream, especially after nearly having no sleep at all from looking after baby Neal's stomach cramps.

BANG BANG BANG.

At that ungodly hour, tapping on the door could only mean one person was there: The only lunatic in Storybrooke mad enough to rise with the first ray of sunlight on a Sunday morning was Hook.

He grunted, ran a hand down his face and paced from his bed to the door, shuffling and groaning. "I am gonna kill that pirate, god help me…"

As he opened the door, the Killian that stood there made him think twice about wanting to sock him in the nose for dragging him out of his perfect dream; He too, was dressed in nightclothes and a bathrobe and looked just as frumpy and shabby as David did; Quite an unusual look for the narcissistic Jones to sport, especially in front of David. And he had a mellowed, calm demeanor, washed clean from any trace of eye-liner.

David frowned. "Hook?" He rubbed his eyes. "What are you…? Is everything ok?"

Not two seconds later, the pirate suddenly threw his arm around David's neck.

A silent few seconds later, it dawned on David that this had to be about the condo. "Ok… all right…" He gave his son-in-law two awkward yet gentle pats on his back. When Killian pulled back, he had a heartwarming grin on his disheveled face. David grinned back. "I suppose it's the view, right?"

"No." Killian shook his head calmly. "You could have placed us all in a cellar with ground level windows, for all I care, mate. Point is… you did this." He nodded and licked his lips repeatedly. "And I've not enough words to convey my gratitude."

"Well, this is familiar…" David playfully tapped his chin before turning to Killian with a wink. "I didn't do it for you, 'mate'…"

"You did." Killian spoke back with a soft nod. "You did it for Emma and Henry and Lilly, thus… you did it for me as well." He placed a hand on David's shoulder. "And whether or not you had me in mind at all, I could care less. You helped me put a roof over my family's head, and for that I deeply thank you."

David was out of words to say, so he simply grinned and nodded. "You're… welcome." He huffed and turned to look at the inside of the loft before turning back to Hook. "Care to… come in for a while?"

Killian shrugged. "Don't mind if I do."

Had anyone in the past told David Nolan that he'd be sitting on a table, sharing parenting tips and cups of hot chocolate with Captain Hook, he would have laughed them down before slugging them. But today, it seemed, Hook was anything but the pirate with the sassy remarks: Killian Jones was truly quite a different matter altogether, and after a solid one hour chat, he started to really see what Emma saw in the guy: A caring heart. He had been right when he had said to him that he was an honorable guy, and he knew then Emma would forever be in the best of hands… or hand, with this guy.

By the end of their chat, they were actually smiling and laughing.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

There was no stopping the little Jones girl.

She didn't only walk now; she ran. Like the wind. And somehow she had managed to become aware of how she could do certain things like maybe cheating her mom out of cookies from the jar (hardly any point in keeping them anywhere at that point, really), closing the hot water tap when her father was in the shower. ("Bloody he… SWAAAAN!) and even knocking a cup over her grandfather's lap while throwing a tantrum when he refused to let go of his baby boy to carry her (while adequately scolded by both Killian and Emma for her behavior, Hook was hardly able to conceal his amusement at that one).

But whenever she wasn't being the typical toddler (what toddler doesn't wreak havoc?), she was an incredibly affectionate and friendly little girl. Like all baby girls, her mother was home and her father was… well, everything else!

The new condo (it wasn't really 'new' per se, but it was new to them) was actually well suited for a little baby to roam around: It was a spacious top floor with tall ceilings and no division between kitchen, dining room and living room, much like the loft, except this one did have properly walled bedrooms, and two bathrooms. The view of the sea from the master suite was truly awe inspiring and Emma was glad she didn't have to wake to see Killian had left the place to stand at the docks, a pastime that marked his past as a pirate and his love for the sea. All he did these days was step out to the balcony and sit there until the sun had completely risen.

Adorable little idiot, that Captain Hook.

Henry was over visiting once while Killian had actually taken Lilly out for a spin at the Pony Ride; apparently there was some sort of fair in downtown Storybrooke, and much as Emma would have loved to go with them, she had come down with what looked like the beginning of the flu.

"Ok, you are NOT going to sneer or wrinkle your nose or ANYTHING like that, I put sweat and tears into this…" Henry said as he poured some soup into a bowl for his mom.

"All de bore reason, kid…" She sniffed from the couch. "Sweat and dears?"

"I'll pretend that wasn't the lamest joke in Storybrooke History. Now…" He turned to her and placed the soup on a tray with a spoon. "Eat up. It'll help you."

"Danks, Hendry…" she nodded as she took the first spoonful into her mouth.

"Well?" The boy looked at her with a smile.

Emma shrugged. "It must be good, bud I cad't really taste anyding ride dow…"

Henry laughed. "You are so funny when you're sick."

"Hilarious, I'll bet." She huffed. "And my stomach's been aching doo… GOD!" She slumped her head back on the armrest of the couch. "The buzzing in my ears, man, make id sdooop!"

Henry chuckled and turned the TV on as he sat by Emma, who ate her soup without a single complaint.

"So, when are Killian and Lilly coming home?"

"I don't dnow, kid. They only left aboud an hour ago, so… they should be a while still. Why?"

He shrugged, his eyes dwelling on the breasty and curvy figure of Megan Fox in Transformers. "I would have liked to go to the fair with them. But naa, you need the company, anyway, so I'll just hold out till they come back and then I can go."

Emma tilted her head to the side and grinned. "Well, go Henry! Really, I'll be ok… Ow… owow ow…" she placed the soup tray on the coffee table. "My tummy's really pdaying up on me, dow…" She put her slippers on and stood as she wrapped herself in her blanket, pacing groggily. "Ow…"

Henry turned to look at his mom and frowned. "Mom? You… you look kind of white…"

"I would, honey, I god a killer cold…."

"But you weren't' so pale a minute ago…" He stood up. "Are you sure you're ok?"

Emma's brows pinched together. "Ugh… by stomach… ow…" she looked up at Henry. "I dink this might be why. I need to go to the badroom, kid, hold the fort, ok? Ow ow… " She walked to the bathroom, holding her stomach in her right hand and tugging the blanket closed to her neck with her left fist.

Henry continued watching the movie with awe before the magnificent creature that was Megan Fox. "Aw, man." He grinned, as he bit his lower lip. "She's hot…"

The kid was growing it seemed. And he was glad Emma hadn't heard that, but kind of wished Killian had; what better person to share the burden of growing male pains than a former pirate?

Five thrashing action movie minutes later, Emma hadn't returned from the bathroom. His eyes still glued on the screen, Henry turned his head in the general direction of the bathroom. "You ok in there? Have you flushed yourself away yet?"

No answer.

The silence finally managed to avert Henry's gaze away from the screen and in the direction of the bathroom. "Mom?"

He muted the TV and stood, walking to the bathroom. "Mom, are you ok?"

When he tapped on the door and had no straight answer, he tapped harder. "MOM?"

He could hear mild gasping from inside.

The boy tried shoving the door down, but failed; after cursing his scrawny teen physique, he ran to grab the nearest heavy object (Killian's old sextant, which weighed a ton) and proceeded to smash the hell out of the door knob. Once he had, he shoved the door open, and gasped at the sight.

His mother was slumped on the floor, one hand still holding on to the sink, looking pleadingly at her son… and her cotton nightgown drenched in the same blood that formed a puddle around her. "He… Henry…" she gasped.

"Oh, god!" The boy ran out of the bathroom and immediately dialed 911.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

When Killian arrived at the emergency room holding a very dazed Lilly (who had started acting up and making machines and rides stop at the exact same time Emma had fallen), he immediately zeroed on Henry, who looked every bit as flustered as he felt.

"Killian!" He shouted and out of nowhere, simply held on to Hook wit a huge hug and cried.

Killian didn't even think back as he held the boy with his one free arm. "It's ok, lad…" But as soon as Henry pulled back, Killian gasped, horrified to find the young man's clothes covered in blood. "SEVEN HELLS, HENRY!" he exclaimed, alarmed. "WHAT THE BLOODY HELL HAPPENED?"

Lilly whimpered and the lights started to flicker; Kiliian looked around and immediately composed himself; swallowing bile, he smiled at his daughter and touched her nose. "We're not mad, see? Daddy's fine, my love… See?" He smiled a big, dumb grin. "Big smile! Your turn!"

The little girl grinned before hugging his neck. Killian's eyes darted to Henry and he tilted his head in the direction of the waiting room. Henry was shaking badly and looked definitely shocked. As they both sat down, Killian sat Lilly on the little kid's table at the waiting lounge and smiled at her as he handed her crayons and a few fluffed up cubes for her to fiddle with while he turned to his stepson. "Ok, lad, easy… easy…" He placed a hand on the teen boy's shoulder. "Now, tell me, what's going on?"

Henry took time to draw breath a few times before he started. "It's mom, she… she was ok, then she said she had a stomach ache and went to the bathroom. And she didn't come out, she…" He licked his lips and he fidgeted with his hands.

Killian grabbed both his hands with his one. "Cool it, m'boy, it's fine." He reassured, thinking that as soon as Henry and Lilly weren't watching he'd punch a hole into the wall. "Now, she was in the loo, and…?"

Tears clung to Henry's eyes. "She was on the floor, Killian, she was… bleeding, and she was really scared and…"

"Ok, lad, it's fine…" He pulled Henry suddenly, not wanting to put the boy through any further distress. "You know your mother, what won't kill her only makes her the tough lass she is."

He hugged Henry hard as the boy silently wept, but also so he wouldn't see his own eyes were staring to glaze. What could have possibly…?

"Killian!" Mary Margaret ran, with David right behind her, panting frantically as he held on to his infant son. "Killian! We're here! Where's Emma? What happened?"

Hook sighed and stood up, pacing to the Charmings. And as soon as Snow saw Henry's blood stained flannel, she lost all her color. "Oh… GOD!"

Killian swiftly turned to Henry. "Lad, take off that shirt and let me have it, and then go sit with your sister. " He grabbed his face with hook and hand and looked intently into his eyes. "And KEEP… HER… CALM! So… Breathe, ok?"

Henry nodded, regained his composure and took of the bloody shirt, handing it to Killian, before joining Lilly at the little play table. "Heyyy, look! There's a dinosaur here, Lillykins!"

"Can we, err… go somewhere else?" Killian whispered, scratching the back of his ear.

The Charmings instantly caught on, knowing well that they didn't want to upset the little Jones girl or they'd be an electrical blowout. They nodded and followed Killian into the other side of the lounge.

"Hook, what happened?" David asked, flustered.

"I don't know, mate." Killian finally allowed himself to look a little less composed. "I was trying to soothe my daughter at the fair, she'd started acting out, and Henry called me and… told me an ambulance had come to get Swan, I…" He shook his head and sat down. "I ran here and found him covered in blood, I've no idea…" he looked up into Snow's eyes and saw fresh tears threatening to slip down her beautiful face. "He says she complained about stomach aches, and then he found her in the loo, covered in blood…" He was unable to continue, the knot on his throat threatening to spill out in a messy sobbing frenzy.

Snow gasped and looked down before looking at Killian. "Were you two expecting a baby?"

Both David and Killian shot their eyes at Snow. Killian frowned and licked his lips. "N… not that I know of, but… No, it's unlikely; Swan would have told me of such tidings, I think…"

"Unless she didn't know herself." David added.

"Mr. Jones?" Nurse Nancy peeked through the door of the room. "There you are. Dr. Whale would like to see you."

Killian bolted up and sped past the Charmings, who followed behind him as he met Whale in the corridor. "Aye, doctor…"

Whale sighed deep. "She'll be ok."

A collective heaving sigh of relief came from the family as Whale continued. "She lost a lot of blood, so we have to keep her here for a couple of days."

Killian fought hard, but in the end, he had to turn and rub his beard to conceal a tear that finally found its way down his cheek. David stepped up. "What happened to her?"

Whale sighed again as Killian desperately tried to swallow the massive bowling ball in his throat. He waited for the pirate to turn to him completely to state what had happened. "It seems that during the year she forgot about us in New York, Emma was fitted with an IUD, right after the little one was born. It was supposed to last approximately six to eight months, but then…" He turned to the pirate. "…the two of you fell into the past and…"

"I'm sorry, what in BLAZES is an IUD?"

Whale nodded. "It's a device, kind of like a little gadget that stops women from becoming pregnant."

Killian remembered Emma mentioning that the first time they made love after she recovered her memories. He nodded and moved his hand in circles as he looked to the floor. "All right. Carry on."

"Well, I am guessing that given the time you two were there… the IUD's effect expired and Emma became pregnant."

Killian gulped hard. "But…" He shook his head. "Why wouldn't she tell me?"

"She had no idea she was with child." Whale nodded. "The device gave her a wobbly but certifiable cycle, anyone would have believed it was still working. The child's sac was punctured by the device and that brought on the bleeding… and the miscarriage." Swan was holding on to David, one hand over her mouth and the other on his shoulder, as she sobbed quietly. Killian simply stood, staring at the floor, tears dripping down. "Look, Captain…" whale stepped to him. "She will be perfectly ok. I have removed the IUD and her body just needs time to kind of… reset. She will be perfectly capable of becoming pregnant again, should you two want another child. I understand this must be tough to hear right now… but she is pretty downhearted, so maybe you'd like to stay with her tonight."

Killian raised his teary-eyed face at Whale, lips pressed hard together. "Can that be done?"

Whale grinned. "Certainly. I'll have a couch moved in right now." He nodded an acknowledgement at the family and left them there.

Snow turned to Killian. "I am… so sorry…"

The pirate sniffed and just nodded and turned to them. "Please inform Henry and help me with my lass. Be calm about it." He then turned and walked away to the front desk to enquire about Emma's whereabouts.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Rain fell from the sky as the judge read Emma's sentence suspension. She, however, was drawn to the pattern of the drops as they cruised down the window to her left. Amazing thing, rain: water was the ultimate life giver, a source of beauty and a force to be reckoned with, whether it was on a tempestuous ocean or a water tap, or a fountain from a garden or park.

She was like water: A life giver. And she had given that little life away to a stranger somewhere.

"Miss Swan, did you understand the release form that has just been read to you?"

Emma snapped back. "Hm? Oh. Yeah."

"Very well, you are then to be released on six month's probation, after which, should your behavior be adequate, you shall be cleared of all charges. Emma?" The young blond beauty looked at the judge. "You made an honest mistake and took the fall for it, and sadly paid the dearest price for that particular mistake. Be sure never to let it happen again. Now, don't you forget; Ever. Ok?"

"I will, your honor." She replied coyly.

"Very well. Best wishes, Emma." She turned to Emma's lawyer. "Case to be revised in six month's time, o October seventeenth. Miss swan, you're free to go." Bang went the gavel… and out Emma went.

As soon as she was free, she turned her face to the right, where her yellow beetle sat, the only remaining item from her recently tragic past. She thought about selling it immediately, but figured it was a better move to start from scratch and sleep in the car.

The key ring had the little swan Neal had stolen for her. She sat behind the wheel and ripped it and was about to throw it out the window, but the judge's words came back to her ears. "don't forget… ever." She whispered to herself and sighed as she took a silver chain from her neck and looped it into the little medal, only to place it back around her neck. "Damn straight, I'll never forget…"

As she started the car, she took her hand to the area where there had once been a baby, and tears threatened to course down her face like the rain outside ran down the windows of the bug. "My baby..." She whispered before admonishing herself, wiping her tears and simply rushing far from the prison's main gate into her new life.

The windshield cleaners were working at max speed… If only her eyes had windshield cleaners too….

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The rain slid down in strange patterns on her room window.

Why was this so eerily familiar?

"Swan?"

Killian's gentle voice drew her gaze to the door, and she grinned a weak little smile. "Hey, captain…" she spoke quietly, as she held her hand out.

Hook swallowed hard; she looked so pale and drained, and not the life force she usually was. His Emma had definitely seen better days. He smirked, trying to hide his grief as best he could, and reached out with the hook, which she grabbed as he placed a bowl of wobbly jello on her tray. That brought the desired effect, and Emma laughed softly.

He then sat by her side and caressed her face, a kind grin on his lips. "You scared the daylights out of your poor boy." He sighed. "He'll have to talk to the cricket about this…"

"Oh…" She shook her head. "I'm so sorry."

He shook his head and looked at the pale little hand holding his hook. "Emma…. Did you really not know?"

She blinked through a haze of tears. "Not… a damn… clue." She swallowed and turned back to the window. "I would have told you."

"Aye… aye that you would have." He huffed, rubbing his beard before sighing. "Well, love, the doctor said you should be fine after this."

"Yeah, I know…"

"At least your nose cleared up." He smiled. "You definitely sound better than what you did this morning."

His sudden cheery reaction broke Emma's heart, basically because she could see clearly past the smirking façade that he was broken. She knew what it would have meant for him to find another little one would come… and knew how it ached him to see her aching too.

"Killian, don't." she stopped him. "Stop it."

"Stop what, my love?"

"Just… don't." She pleaded.

Killian stared at her and sighed, his grin now evaporated into a hard lipped grimace. "How do you know me so well, Emma?"

She felt a tear cruise down her face and she side grinned. "Like you said…. Open book."

The knot in his throat was finally undone and he broke down with a gentle heave. "Oh… Emma…" He allowed himself fall into her arms, and they spent the next hour just crying in silence, holding each other and mourning for the little one they didn't know would come.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Henry looked at little Lilly with happy eyes. "How did you get to be so cute? Huh?" He tussled her hair, as the child sat in the playpen at her grandparents' loft.

Lilly smiled her adorable little toothed grin at Henry and reached out to hand him a stuffed duck. "Oh? You want me to have this?" The boy sighed as he took it. "Ok, sis, now what?"

Lilly quirked her eyebrow up and turned to find another toy to hand over. She settled for a cube. "What, this too? You're too kind today, Lillykins!"

She then looked at Henry and grinned, babbling a loud "dadadada" and holding her little hands out. Henry stared at her. "Ok… here you go…." He held both hands out as he held the toys for her to reach.

"No, no, no." Lilly shook her head. "Dadadadada…" Out she held her hands again, and then darted her huge, blue eyes over at the cube. When Henry turned to look at the cube, he saw it was branded with ships, helms and compasses. Odd that the other toy would be a duckling.

He freaked out a little within his mind before turning to Lilly. "Seriously?" He swallowed hard. "Are you trying to tell me something here, sis?"

Lilly stared intently into her brother's eyes and gave a quick nod. "Aye." She said, making him giggle, and then she turned to find another toy, a tiny little Barbie doll baby. She handed showed it to Henry. "Bebeh…" she mumbled before she dropped the little plastic doll out the pen, and then, shook her head side to side, staring at henry. "No bebeh…"

The boy was frozen. "Lilly…." He whispered. "How did you… know this? How do you even…?"

Lilly reached out her little finger and whined, making Henry come close to her face… where she then simply touched his forehead once, still staring into his eyes.

"This has been too much for a single day…" Henry whispered. "You… saw it in my head, Lilly?"

Another nod and another aye.

She then reached out both her little hands and henry handed her the two toys. Lilly kissed each toy before sitting down calmly, and looking at Henry intently. "Mama, dada…" she mumbled.

"You want me to… kiss mom for you?"

"Aye."

"And… your dad as well?"

"Aye."

She then grinned and continued playing in her pen as if nothing had happened.

It wasn't until Henry looked up, aghast, and saw his grandparents staring at the scene from the kitchen, their mouths gaping in sheer shock.

"Smart kid…" David mumbled.

Lilly looked up at him and raised an eyebrow, grinned, and went back to play.

She was obviously on to everyone.

That was the night they discovered that Lilly was not just a little girl with magic… she was something else. Something very special. What that was, no one knew.


	21. Cristal Clear

Killian himself took care of cleaning up before Emma came home. While he was used to the sight of blood (years and years of being a swashbuckling pirate captain with an uncanny skill at wielding a blade and gutting enemy assailants that dared try to board the Jolly Roger), cleaning Emma's blood was very different from swabbing the deck with guts and innards from various villainous foes. This was not just blood; it was Emma's blood... and also, the remains of what could have been their…. Their…

He sighed and blocked his mind as he gathered the pluck to just get on with it and not give the whole thing any further thought, lest he fall down and weep again. Emma would need him to be what he always was: her foundation. They had done their share of grieving and, at least for him, it was time to become her supporter.

He knew her well enough to know how this would affect her and how long it would take for her to completely recover.

By the time he had to collect her and bring her home, He and David had cleaned the apartment "from stem to stern". Henry had offered his help, but Killian had been adamant for him to remain with his sister and Snow. The boy had seen enough and he really didn't need to be subjected to once again experience that sight.

When they brought her home, she was still a little weak, but was a far cry from the woman that had entered the hospital four days earlier. She was still a little drawn and had notorious circles under her eyes, and she was under a strict iron pill treatment to replenish her blood. Whale said she'd need her rest and Killian would very much see to it that she would.

David carried her upstairs and after Killian opened the door, Emma raised her face and looked at the apartment with a smile. "No place like home…" she grinned and closed her eyes, inhaling deeply as she leaned back into her father's neck. "And it smells like roses in here… Thanks, guys…"

"Should I put you in bed, sweetie?" David asked as he carried her indoors.

"No, I've been in bed for four days, enough is enough… I want to sit on the balcony. Killian?"

In less than a fraction of a second, he was beside her. "Aye, darling?"

She grinned and reached out, caressing his face. "Care to sit with me for a while there?"

He smiled back, grabbed her hand from his face and kissed it. "There's NOTHING I'd rather do. Let me set up a couple of seats, all right?"

He went off and placed two small garden tote chairs she had bough a week before the incident, together with a couple of blankets; as he did, he took a brief chance to look at the sea. There was a precious sunset. It was hard to believe anyone in the world could possibly feel grief on an afternoon like this one and he hoped that maybe some of that soothing feeling the sea had always given him would perhaps rub off on Emma.

And on himself as well.

He slid back inside as David paced to the balcony.

"Wait… dad, put me down."

David looked at her. "Can you handle it?"

"Gotta try." She tilted her head to the side as David gently bent down and allowed her feet to gingerly feel the floor before completely allowing her weight down completely. She wobbled a little and reached out her hand, where Killian instantly grabbed her and steadied her. "Okay… okay…" she sighed and smiled at her dad. "I'm good." She then turned a silent, pleading look to Killian.

"I got you, Swan." He nodded as he firmly steadied her, his right hand around her waist, and his left arm serving as a handle for her.

David stepped forward and kissed her head. "Sweetie, you know your mom and I are but a call away. I have to go, I'm on double duty with my son and Lilly…."

Emma nodded gratefully. "I wish I could say 'get her over here' right now, but…"

"We have her covered, honey, you just.." He caressed her hair. "…get better, ok?"

"Yeah." She grinned a reassuring grin.

David looked at Hook. "Buddy, if she gets sick or anything, please…"

"Aye mate, I'll let you know promptly…" Killian nodded. "Come on, Swan, one step at a time…" He pulled her gently to the balcony.

David looked at the two as they turned and walked to the balcony; he remained there, staring as Killian gently helped Emma sit down. The pirate then turned and saw David standing there, with a sad but confident grin on his face. He gave the prince a knowing nod, which David responded before sighing and turning around to exit the apartment.

She was a big girl now.

Killian huffed and sat down beside her, reaching out his ringed hand to hold hers. She squeezed gently. "Look at that, Killian…" She stared into the sunset. "How could anyone have a problem on an evening like this one?"

He chuckled. Emma turned to him with a mild, mocking grin. "Why do you scuffle, pirate?"

"Oh, just reminiscing, love." He sighed, his eyes also fixed on the distant sun. "You said the exact same words the evening you went to find me in the Jolly Roger." He winked at her. "When we made Lilly."

She smiled and frowned. "Yeah… yeah I did say that, didn't I? God… A year and a half ago…"

"Two years."

"No. Look, today is…"

"Swan…" He smirked under his brow and turned to look at her grinning. "We've had an extra six months to spare there, remember?"

She closed her eyes and huffed. "Damn. That's right." She turned to look at him. "Two years? Wow."

He turned his face to her completely. "Why do you always look so surprised, love?"

She smiled and looked down before turning to the sunset again. "The longest I've ever managed to keep a guy has been two months. Two years is an all new record for me."

He laughed softly and rubbed little circles on her hand with his thumb. "Swan, Swan, Swan. Why won't you believe me?"

"Believe what?" She replied softly.

He turned to face her. "Like I told you, I'm in this for the long haul. Never leaving. That means sickness, hangovers, fights…"

"Oh… fights…" she chuckled.

"We've had our good ones. Let's see…" He leaned his head back and grinned. "There was that knife on my neck, then you tied me to a tree and summoned the ogres on my sorry arse, then you chained be to the top of a beanstalk, then…"

"Then you scammed us all by pulling Aurora's heart and later told me I was nothing but a dried up, pruny old bean after you locked me and my mom in a cage…"

He laughed at that one. "To be honest, I had it for you bad by then, but… Cora…"

"Bullshit, Killian."

"Straight up, love. You then challenged me to a swordfight at the lake bed…"

"And there, you basically told me that you didn't want to kill me because you had a hell of a penis."

He turned, wide-eyed and blushing. "I DID NO SUCH THING!"

"Really?" She turned a smirk and raised an eyebrow. "Does this sound familiar? 'When I jab you with my sword, you'll feel it'? And the whole intercourse innuendo with the sword sloooowly, slooowly going through your hook while you descended on op of me? Killian…" She laughed. "You were talking about your penis. Face it. Be a man about it."

Killian gulped and it amused Emma to no ends to see he had crossed the line from red to damn near scarlet. He smiled and scratched his hear. "Aye, well…" He cleared his throat. "I thought it would have been a far more enticing choice to engage in amorous congress with you rather than to put a hole through your spleen, sweetheart."

"Well, you're right in that sense… for sure." She squeezed his hand. "But you wouldn't have killed me."

"No… I would have not." He grinned. "And that's why I let you slug me down."

"You… let me?" she smirked arrogantly. "No, Hook, I beat you fair and square."

Killian smiled. "Love, you didn't think you could beat Captain Hook with a blade, did you? You were a bloody amateur." He huffed. "Matter of fact, you still are."

She gasped in mock horror. "Excuse me! I slayed a dragon!"

"Excuse you, I've slayed two of those… and a kraken." He turned a conceited, lowered face to Emma. "Pirate."

Emma stared at him and mimicked him with a squeaky voice. "_Two of those and a kraken_." She used her other hand to gently slap his. "Cocky bastard…"

He smiled.

They remained silent for a few seconds before he spoke again. "And look where we are now, love… If you had told me then that I'd be this bloody domesticated at some point, I'd have laughed at you." He looked at her and smiled. "But truthfully, I wouldn't trade this life for a damn, bloody thing in the world."

She smiled. "Glad you feel that way." She felt into the silent comfort only Killian could provide in moments of silence before turning to him. "I'm sorry… Killian."

"Sorry for what, my love?"

She swallowed. "The baby. I didn't know, I … I couldn't…"

"Ok, Swan we'll stop this right now." He cut her abruptly. "We won't dwell in it, darling, and I certainly will NOT allow you to even begin to think this was in any form a thing you must punish yourself for, all right? No." He swallowed and looked at the now nearly extinct sun. "The child was simply not meant to be. Should it come to that, we will have another. And if it doesn't happen, I will still be content with you, Henry and Lilly." He rolled his eyes at her and was glad to find her gaze was serene and as beautiful as the sunset it self. "Are we perfectly clear on that, Emma?"

"So…" She bit her lower lip. "You're not… upset that… it happened?"

"Of course I am." He looked down. "But I still have you. And we still got Lilly and Henry. So if the fates saw fit to take that little one from us, they probably had good reason and I am still a blessed man."

She smiled the most beautiful smile he'd ever seen on her and he had to remember to breathe when she reached out and touched his face. "You… are beautiful. Inside and out."

"I find beautiful to be unfitting to the essence of my person, Swan. I prefer dashing rapscallion." He grinned and raised a playful eyebrow to her.

She laughed a healthy laugh and Killian felt, for the first time since her miscarriage, that she was once again happy. "You will never stop being Captain Hook…"

"Nope… nor do I expect you to ever stop being Emma Swan."

She sighed and both once again fell into silence.

"By the way… you do." Emma nodded.

"Hmm?" He turned an absent minded face to her. "I do what, my darling?"

"You do have one hell of a penis."

Killian grunted and laughed aloud, once again blushing. "Bloody hell, savior!"

Emma beamed proudly, knowing even a princess could still make a pirate sailor blush.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

It was remarkable how Lilly remained composed during the week her mother took to recover. She, they now knew, had a keen understanding of things around her and that was, in many ways, a scary thought. How was it even possible that she understood what had happened to her mother? And all from Henry's thoughts.

When she was asked if she missed her mom, Lilly responded with a very assured "aye", but made no sign of appearing conflicted. Still, every night, she asked Snow or David, "Mama, dada?"

"Still a couple days more, puppet."

She'd nod, say another aye, sigh deep and go back to her toys.

After pulling David into the bathroom, Snow looked at her in concern and sighed as she turned back in. "Do you think she understands every single word we say?"

David scratched his brow. "If she does, then this kid is practically the brightest kid in the world. She can't even speak properly yet."

"Her grasp on conceptual understanding is off the scale." Snow shook her head. "Seriously, I had pre-school kids that still battled with the notion of pregnancy, let alone a miscarriage. Yet…"

"Yet, indeed." David nodded.

Snow turned to him. "Should we ask Gold again? This goes beyond my understanding of what magic is."

David turned to Lilly, who was still occupied doing something with her wooden cubes. He then turned back to his wife. She raised her little face, grinned, and went back to whatever she was doing with her cube set. "I think that before we do, we should talk to Emma and Hook about this."

"Emma will freak… not to mention Killian."

"No, no she won't." David held Snow's face between his hands. "She loves her little girl and already knows she can do… stuff. Besides…" he grinned. "She's got powers all her own. What better mom could she have asked for? Those two are mad over her and…"

"Errr… guys?" they heard Henry call. When they turned to look, Henry was standing by the bathroom door. "I… think you should come and see this…"

Snow and David exchanged a look before stepping out of the bathroom and walking to the little play pen. When they looked down, they found it impossible not to gasp.

Lilly's cubes read "MISS MOMMY DADDY".

Snow swallowed and looked to her husband. "D… David?"

The prince huffed hard and crouched down to the little girl. "Lilly… did you… write this?"

The little girl stared into his eyes and nodded. "Aye."

David rubbed his jaw and huffed. "Well… sweetie, I'm sure they miss you too. You know mommy is a bit sick now, right?

"Aye."

Snow knelt beside David and looked at Lilly. "Lilly, honey, do you understand everything we're saying?"

The toddler turned her eyes to her grandmother and grinned her two-toothed baby grin. "Aye."

Henry and Grandparents gulped hard. Lilly looked at their faces and slumped herself down on her tiny diapered butt, fiddling around with her cubes.

Before their dazed eyes, two new words emerged: "NO FEAR"

She then raised her little eyes and smacked her chubby little hand on the floor beside the cubes, as if insisting on her point. "Dadadadadadahhh".

So she could walk around, barely talk… and was already fluent in writing.

"My little sister is Matilda…" Henry giggled.

Lilly looked at Henry and scowled. "NONONONO! LILLY!"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Emma Swan slept in her car for six years before she secured a decent job at a law firm, starting off as a secretary for a ruthless legal attorney who had a long history of wins; his area of expertise was basically finding bailed perps who either failed to repay their bail money or simply avoided it altogether, aiding a bail bonds agency in Boston. One day he heard Emma on the phone talking to some flame (not talking, shouting), and telling him "I am gonna hunt you down, Tyler, I'll hunt you down and whip your ass so hard you won't even know whether it was Emma Swan or a Mack Truck that hit you!", before slamming the phone down. She then turned her head and her angry scowl changed to a stunned demeanor. "Mr. Ferguson! I… I…"

"You're pretty fierce, Miss Swan!" he giggled. "Should I tell the company to run to the storm cellar?"

"Ugh…" she shook her head and tucked her forehead into her hands. "Do you know how hard it is for a former inmate to secure an apartment in this city? I had finally managed it … still grateful to you for that, by the way, I've not forgotten…" she grinned at her boss. "And this guy comes in and grafitties the friggin' wall! I just lost my home AND my deposit money! Like, what the actual HELL!" she shook her head. "No thanks to this little asshole, I now have to sleep in my car again, dammit…"

Mr. Ferguson giggled. "I did warn you against letting people in, Emma."

"I know… crap…" she huffed. "I need to start looking again."

Mr. Ferguson was a slightly older man with a wedding band he wore with uncanny and unprecedented pride, at least in Emma's experience. His attitude towards her had been fatherly from the get go, especially because he too had had a rocky start in life before he finally settled and practiced law.

He sat before her and thought for a while. "My sister in law has a little condo in North End. I'll personally recommend you to her. It's pretty much move in ready, great view of the city…"

"North End? You know I can't afford that kind of rental, sir…" She sighed.

He grinned and nodded. "What if I offered you and extra job?" He leaned in. "You'd still have the same working hours covered by the firm, plus whatever extra you can make during these schedules…."

Emma frowned. "I … don't…"

"The agency ALWAYS needs representatives to find fugitive perps."

Emma frowned and smiled. "You need ninjas, not former inmates."

"I think… you are far tougher than you believe yourself to be." He grinned. "Look, all you have to do is find the person, keep him busy, call the agency and they'll be in in a jiffy. And you just made yourself a couple k worth of hunting time."

Emma's eyes widened. "Two thousand?"

"Per head." He nodded at her.

Emma nodded. "Sounds interesting."

"You'd have to do some detective work; undercover stuff, go find these guys, figure out where they are, what they're doing…" he bobbed his head. "I'm sure you can handle it. And if you can… well, 'whoop their asses like a Mack Truck', then I'm sure the agency might even consider throwing in a bonus for you somewhere."

Emma leaned back on her seat. "Move-in ready, you said?"

"Yep."

The blonde girl smiled. "When do I start?"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Mary Margaret dropped by one day when Emma was by herself. She had assured Killian it was safe for him to return to the docks while she stayed at home. She did spend most of the time sleeping, but while she was awake she was glued to the sheriff's office online, doing research and searching for different clues in Storybrooke for David to use.

She had to keep busy somehow… and finding perps was what she did best.

Snow's tapping on the door made Emma turn her head sharply. She stood up (slowly but with far more strength on her legs than the days before) and paced to the door.

A loud, happy screech greeted her and Emma's face lit up. "LILLY!"

She held her arms out and held her little girl, covering her in kisses, getting teary eyed as the little girl giggled and gargled and babbled. "Oh, god, I've missed you! I've missed you! Do you miss mommy and daddy? Hmm?" She smiled at her.

"Thought I'd bring her over to visit." Snow smiled. "Henry's coming a bit later." She looked around. "Killian?"

"Back at the docks…" Emma replied still smiling at her little girl.

"What time can we expect him back?"

Emma turned her face in full to her mother. "In about… an hour. Why?"

Snow sighed. "There's something the two of you should really know."

Lilly looked at her grandma and held her arms out. "Nanananana-bbrrrlpapapa"

"Oh, you want these?" Snow smiled, raising her eyebrows.

"Aye!"

"Oh, man, when did she start talking like a pirate?" Emma smiled. "You little pirate! My little pirate!" she playfully nibbled at Lilly's ear, making her giggle.

"Oh?" Mary Margaret sighed. "Lilly, let's just show mommy what Lilly can do with her funny cubes, huh?" She let herself in and walked to the still scarcely furnished space. "Go on Emma, put her down!"

Emma frowned and turned to her daughter who was happily leaning over in the direction where her grandmother was already setting up cubes on the carpeted floor. "Wow. You REALLY wanna play with those, huh… Ok."

After Emma placed the little girl on the floor, the child started babbling a lot and began to move the cubes around, apparently having some sort of conversation with them. Emma then turned to Snow and received a motherly hug. "Hi mom…"

"How are you feeling, Emma?" Snow asked, kindly.

Emma grinned a still sad but calm and reassuring grin. "We're ok. One day at a time, you know…" She turned to look at Lilly. "I miss my kids."

Snow nodded. "Oh trust me, they've missed you too. This one… pff." She shook her head. "She's got us all in awe, I'll tell you."

"Oh…" Emma winced. "How many light bulbs do we owe you guys by now?"

Snow laughed and pulled Emma to the couch. "No light bulbs. It's … something else."

Emma blinked a few times. "Wh… what is it?"

Snow grinned and tilted her head in Lilly's direction. "Well…. See for yourself."

Emma turned and at first, didn't notice the cubes over her daughter's radiantly happy face. But then…

"What the…. Holy crap…" she took a hand to her mouth, her jaw slack.

LILY HOME.

Emma turned her face from Lilly to Snow to Lilly and back to Snow. "Did… she…?"

"Yep." Snow nodded confidently. "Ask her anything, and I mean, ANYTHING."

Fearfully, Emma slid to the floor. "Lilly, honey… do you… know why mommy's sick?"

Snow sighed as Lilly's little face fell. But she just replied with a nod. "Aye."

Emma swallowed. "Tell me."

The tot immediately turned with clumsy, baby-like motions, to her cubes, and wrote before Emma: NO BABY.

Emma turned with a gasp to her mother. "H… how is this even possible?"

While Snow shrugged, Lilly moved her cubes

MAGIC.

Emma had a hard time breathing and Lilly's face got whimpery. "Mamma?"

"She asked us not to be afraid." Snow grinned. "Like that. With her cubes." Snow went down on the floor with her daughter. "She's special, Emma."

Emma swallowed and smiled at her daughter, who finally grinned again. "Lilly… how did you learn all this… stuff?"

She once again leaned over, reaching up to touch Emma's head.

"She told Henry she could see it in his head. Emma, she can read minds."

Emma looked at her and caressed her unruly little head of black hair. "Why? What for?"

Lilly showed her her best baby smile before moving her cubes again.

LILLY SPECIAL

"Yeah… yeah you are, kid." Emma leaned over and kissed her daughter's head.

LOVE

Just then, the keys rustled and Killian's voice sounded through the air. "Swan?"

"Dadadadadadadaaaaa!" Lilly screeched excitedly.

"WEHEY!" Her father dropped his keys and basically ran to her daughter. "When did you get here my little love?"

"DADADADADAAAAA!"

He picked her up and kissed her, tickling her face with his scruff. "God's I've missed you, my darling little pirate girl! Hahahaha!" You miss your dad, then, eh?"

"AYE!"

Killian gasped and turned a smiling, wide-eyed face to the two women on the floor. "She's talking like me!"

"Yeah, I noticed that." Emma nodded, her lips pressed together.

"My wee pirate lass!" he kissed her before joining the others on the floor. He leaned in and kissed Emma's lips briefly, "Hello, my love…" before turning to Mary Margaret with a grateful smile. "This is indeed a pleasant surprise, milady."

Snow smiled. "Yeah, that it is!"

Killian placed the baby down on the floor and turned to Snow. "How is she? She behaves?"

"As much as a little pirate girl could behave!" Snow nodded playfully.

Killian chuckled. "Aye, my little pride and joy. But is she coming home already?" He turned with a scorn to Emma. "I thought you still needed a few more day's rest, Swan."

"That's… kind of a moot point now, Killian. We have bigger fish to fry."

He heaved and huffed. "Oh, no… what now? Which wily wizard is threatening us all with a new crises, then?"

Snow shook her head. "Oh, not a wizard."

"A witch." Emma nodded.

"Bloody hell…" he shook his head, looking at his hand. "Very well, who is she?"

Emma rolled her eyes to Lilly. "Your daughter."

Killian turned to look at the baby and like her mother before him, his blood froze.

MISS DADDY

"She even has perfect spelling." Mary Margaret nodded.

"She knows why I've been sick, Killian, she understands it." Emma nodded. "I'm not even close to kidding."

He gulped and leaned in to his daughter. "Lilly, darling…" he whispered. "Do you really… do this?"

She nodded. "Aye."

He huffed. "What do you need, sweet pea?"

She turned to her cubes.

MAMA DADA

"She understands us?" he frowned.

"Every damn word." Emma replied sternly.

NO CUSS

Lilly turned a pout to her mother and Killian laughed. "She's on to you, Swan."

LILLY HOME.

Snow leaned in to the little girl. "Sweetie, mommy has to be completely well before we bring you home… don't you think we should give her more time?"

Lilly took a finger to her mouth before reaching out (and nearly falling over her side) to touch Emma's knee.

"Ow… owowow!" Emma grimaced and took her hand to her stomach.

"Emma?" Killian turned swiftly. "Darling?"

When Lilly moved her finger away, she went back to her cubes. Emma drew breath and looked up to Killian with a look of astonishment. He immediately noticed she had completely regained her color.

"Dadadadadada blapblapbrralalab"

They all turned to the child.

MOMMY WELL.

Once again, they were all surprised beyond any possible spectrum of surprise.

"Lilly…" Emma swallowed. "Did you just… cure me?"

Lilly smiled at her mother. "Aye." She pushed herself up and toddled to Emma, hugging her neck as she continued to babble.

And the cubes read : LILLY HOME.


	22. Smart

Killian was pretty much oblivious to medical technology in this realm, so when Emma suggested they take Lilly for some testing, he was all but lost (and horrified) to the concepts of people looking at his daughter's brain without cracking her little head open. In the end he agreed and the merry little Jones combo took leave to see Whale.

Even if Dr. Victor Whale was not a realm original, he had also been introduced to the concept of magic later in life. His shades-of-grey world had, he agreed, been far more depressing, but he was a stern man of science. Even in Storybrooke and after having been convinced that magic was indeed real, he still chose to stick to orthodox medical procedure as much as possible before recurring to magic to save lives. So he was in for a pretty big shock when he gave Emma Swan a check-up and found her to be fully healed from the tissue damage of her violent miscarriage; almost as if she had never been through the ordeal at all.

When he was told the little girl had been responsible, he was immediately super keen to revise her and perform a couple of painless tests on Lilly Jones.

Of all things, he certainly didn't expect the child to actually… talk through cubes when she wasn't even two. When Killian set the little girl down with her little cube set, he turned to Whale and grinned. "So, where do we start?" He swallowed. "Emma told me you'd look at her…. Brain?"

Whale smiled. "Yeah Captain, no need to be so apprehensive, believe me, it's completely non-invasive. We call it an EEG or CAT Scan; basically they're beams of…"

"Cat scan? How do felines come into play here, mate?"

Whale laughed. "CAT as in C-A-T, Hook."

"Computerized Axial Tomography. Basically photons slice the brain into images visible on a screen…"

Killian paled. "Slice?"

"Not like…. Slicing, slicing, buddy, it's more like…taking imagery through photonic energy and reproducing it on the screen, basically we can see THROUGH her head in milimetric proportions in real time and then…" he looked at Hook's highly confused grimace and simply huffed. "You know what? Why don't you and Emma come in to see it done? I swear to you, captain, you've nothing to worry about, it is absolutely harmless."

Emma stepped in, grinning as she buttoned her shirt. She reached and grabbed Killian's arm. "Having trouble with conceptual science there, pirate?"

"This whole brand of magic you people call science is still beyond me."

Whale continued to smile amusedly. "Well, I'll just go start the paperwork and the consent forms for Lilly's testing and…"

"Why don't you just ask her? Right off the bat?" Emma shrugged with a smirk.

Whale gave Emma a confused scowl. "Mrs. Jones, are you… asking me to enquire an eighteen month old baby whether or not she agrees to have her head scanned?"

"Aye, she is." Killian nodded.

The Joneses smiled a wicked, knowing smile, knowing exactly what Whale was in for.

Whale huffed. "Look, if we're going to have this done today, I really have no time for this…"

Killian continued to grin, nodded and closed his eyes. "Hmm…" He crouched down to his daughter. "Lilly, love, the doctor wants to perform some rather painless tests on you…."

"This is ridiculous…" Whale rolled his eyes.

"Are you up to it, darling?"

Lilly looked up at her mom, who raised her hands to her sides. "It's entirely up to you, sweetie…"

Whale shook his head. "You are talking to her like an accountable adult, Emma! You're her parents, the decision is not hers until she's eighteen, it's yours! Now enough fantasizing and…."

He felt the tug on his trousers and looked down.

Like everyone else before him, he was jaw slacked. He crouched down next to the Captain, one hand over his mouth, looking at the cubes.

LILLY READY

"Y… you did this, didn't you Captain?" He spoke muffled from behind the hand clamping his mouth.

Killian chuckled. "Lilly, tell the good medic what you want, then, love."

Lilly turned her hands on her cubes and moved them all around.

BELIEVE

"Good god…" He fell on his butt and Emma chuckled.

"L… Lilly, you actually… understand what we're asking and saying?"

She looked up at the doctor. "Aye."

Whale smiled and laughed softly. "This is… amazing, this is beyond anything ANYONE in this world has ever…" He ran a hand through his hair. "So, ok… Lilly, are you ok with me performing tests?"

"Aye."

"This is…. Ok. I'll get the bad part done first, sweetie, I need a little bit of your blood."

"BLOOD?" Hook growled.

"I really need to see her bloodwork, Captain."

Lilly raised one eyebrow up at the same time as her father.

PAIN

Whale was delighted. "Well, yeah, there's pain in THAT one, but I promise you, it's the ONLY one that comes with pain and it's very, very little. Plus, your mom and dad are pretty brave people. I'm sure you're brave too, and if you give me a little bit of your blood, you can have a candy bar from that jar. So, what do you say?"

Killian and Emma looked at Lilly. The way she gazed was, by all accounts, baby-like; but then she turned back to her cubes.

LILLY BRAVE

Whale laughed and stood up, looking at both parents in their eyes. "I swear this is unheard of."

"Tell us about it." Emma nodded.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"So if we add ten more rocks to these fifteen…" The teacher said, "How many rocks will we have?"

"Twenty-five!" The eager eight-year-old children boys responded in an eager chorus.

"Very good, lads! Now, from twenty-five rocks, a young man comes and picks six out. How many rocks do we have left now?"

It took the boys a few more seconds to respond this time, before they once again emitted evenly: "Nineteen!

"Excellent. Now, taking those nineteen into account, someone comes in and duplicates the quantity. How many rocks have we now, my boys?"

There was silence while the lads thought the answer out carefully.

"This is daft." Came a little voice.

"Oi!" The teacher stood straight. "Who said that!?"

Silence.

"We shall not continue until the boy responsible for such insolence stands up and steps forward, lest he be a little coward! Come on now, who said this class is daft?"

A lone, dark little boy with eyes bluer than blue stood up with a huff. "It was I, sir."

"Very well then, Master Jones, come forward now, step before the class…"

Killian shrugged and paced to the front.

"Now, lad… why is it you believe this to be daft? Do I bore you, boy?"

"But no, sir! It's the class that bores me, not you. On the contrary sir, you do amuse me so…"

The boys gasped collectively.

"You are insolent, boy!" The teacher growled.

"Not insolent at all sir. Just really bloody smart." He took the chalk from the teacher's hand. "Here: The duplicate of nineteen is thirty-eight. And let's say there's a mighty avalanche and this amount increases a fifty-six fold: That will be two thousand, one hundred and twenty eight rocks, sir. If after that, seven hundred and sixty two people from the local village decide to divide the rocks equally among them for home-making, then each will take two rocks each, but there will be a residual amount of rocks for each, approximating the amount of point eight…" he scribbled before the awed and angered stare of the stern maths professor at the academy. "…which would mean we'd have to dally with fractions. So now we have two rocks per villager and, if we round the decimal to eight avoid trouble, because there are a LOT of numbers in that decimal, sir, we're talking exactly two rocks and eight tenths." He turned with a cheeky smile to the professor. "I don't usually enjoy working with fractions, sir, but I'll do in this time, so you can follow and not get lost…" He turned back to the blackboard with a smirk and continued his class while the boys giggled and the teacher fumed. "So, say we have each person take his or her two and eight tenths of rock back home, and of course, they see they need a great many more rocks to build their houses… basically they need the seventh potency of two and eight tenths. So now we have to make an equation to solve that particular conundrum…" He closed a parenthesis around the fraction and added the little seven at the top right. "Very well, this we call an "elevation to the seventh potency, and it should give us the fair amount of rocks each villager shall have to build his home, which will beeeee…" he rolled his eyes up and pouted before turning back to the blackboard. "Here: One thousand, three hundred and forty nine rocks and thirty hundredths, which translates back to decimals as one thousand, three hundred and forty nine point thirty. Now we are completely able to calculate how many rocks it took to build the village sir. So each villager who has this quantity of rocks built their homes and the villagers were seven hundred and sixty two, if I recall, then village should have needed exaaactly…" He thought again before turning to write. "One milliard, twenty eight thousand, one hundred and sixty one rocks and fifteen hundredths, if shared in good equal form." He walked back to the teacher and winked a very happy Jones wink as he placed the chalk back in his teacher's hand. "Now THAT, sir, was fun."

He turned back to sit down as the class erupted into wild applause.

He naturally never made it back to his seat: The teacher swiftly grabbed him by his sideburn. "I will show you fun, you cheeky little sod! Headmaster Clemmons will cane you accordingly!"

"WHY? FOR BEING SMART?" Killian complained, sneering in pain.

"For being a smart arse!" he hollered back.

That night (and ten fresh cane marks on his back later), Liam was cleaning up his little brother's wounds with a smile on his face. "Who was it this time?"

"Professor Gilliam."

"He's a turd. No match for your quick wit, Killian."

"Indeed... OWW! He winced as the healing serum entered his body.

"I believe one day, as you grow older, you can be one hell of a navigator, with your mathematical skill, brother." Liam laughed. "Even I am no match against you in that sense."

"Few people are. And I'm rather a good-looking lad as well. You should see my classmates, gargoyles, the lot of them."

"Now there, no need to be so conceited, lad!" Liam pulled his brother's shirt down. "Good form is, above all things, what you must rule your life by, Killian, and struttery is NOT good form. However…" He smiled and placed a hand on his little brother's shoulder. "Here we are, a year after papa left us, and look how far we've come."

Killian grinned. "I saver your arse, love."

"And don't think I've forgotten! Now…" He tilted his head in the direction of the austere desk. "Go finish your Literature and History homework; math might earn you a good name and a dignified rank, but words and culture will earn you a good lass and a family, so go."

"Aye aye, Captain!" The little boy grinned before hugging his brother. "You are the best brother in the world, Liam."

By the time he was thirteen, Killian Jones had replaced Professor Gilliam… and his class was far more fun… and involved no corporal punishment.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"It's easy as pie lad, come…" Killian scooted over next to Henry over the boy's algebra book. "Now… To accurately solve an equation, m'boy, first you have to clear away all traces of fractions. You can do that by multiplying both sides by the value number given, which issss…" He turned, brow raised, to Henry.

"There's an x there!" henry shrugged.

"Aye, but you had already figured out the value of a, over here, remember?"

"Oh yeah, that's right! Twenty two." Henry nodded as he scribbled his responses, figuring out the problem as Killian looked on.

Killian looked at the answer and smiled. "Clever lad. Well done. Now…" he pointed his hook at the precise point of the paper. "Identify your least common denominator there and… Distribute the answer evenly to each side… Like so…" Henry was already complying as he balanced the equation. "Perfect. Now study this answer and tell me…" He turned to look at Henry with a smirk. "Is the largest denominator a multiple for all these others?" henry studied the paper and tuned with a nod. Killian laughed and ruffled Henry's hair. "Then congratulations, m'boy, the equation has been solved satisfactorily."

Henry smiled and turned to him. "You're pretty good at this!"

"One needs to be, to become a sea officer and expert navigator."

"Well, I don't know about THAT, but…" He closed his notebook. "You'd make a hell of a good math teacher in Storybrooke University."

Killian smiled and grabbed Henry's shoulder just as Emma came through the door, with Lilly in one hand and the results from her tests in another.

"Dadadadaaaaa! Lilly grinned and held her arms out to her father.

"Hello, little darling!" Killian stood with a smile as he took the baby into his arms and then turned to kiss Emma. "So…" He smiled. "What do we have for a daughter, then, Swan?"

Emma huffed and grinned. "You are NOT going to believe this…" She set the envelope down and opened it before the curious stares of her father and older brother. "Look at this imagery…" She pointed out an image of Lilly's head as if it had been sliced in half. Henry was fascinated. Killian shuddered, but continued looking. "See this? This is the front cortex. The use of that that she's making equals that of a fifty five year old mathematical genius." She placed her hands on her hips. "According to Whale, our kid has the IQ of Einstein and she's not even two..."

"Ok, love… wait…" He grinned while Lilly fiddled with his ear and settled on his shoulder, visibly ready to sleep her nap. "Just for a minute pretend I'm a three hundred year old pirate with no knowledge of medical terminology pertaining to your realm and century, now… Who is Einstein and what on earth is an IQ?"

Emma giggled and sighed. "Ok. IQ means Intelligence Quotient. Basically it's how smart you are. Look… You can read graphs, right?"

2Swan…" he rolled his eyes.

"Ok, ok, just checking. Here is the normal scale range for a little girl her age."

"Uh-huh…" Killian looked at a number. It read 25-112.

"And this…" she turned the page. "This is Lilly."

Killian nearly lost his footing.

"Two hundred and seventy eight?" He swallowed.

"Whale says that her cognitive learning skills are just… off the chart. She's pretty much taking in everything she sees. He also told us that other areas of her development, such as her gross and fine motor skills, spoken language, her social and emotional development… all are normal for a child her age."

"So she's just… really bloody smart." Killian blinked as Lilly was no softly snoring into his ear.

"Not just that. Look at this…" She produced an image of a different part of her brain. "her parietal and frontal lobes are highly developed, almost as if she had been born with an almost… adult brain already. She's got all sorts of skills down pat. She can see, smell, hear things we can't even dream of hearing… and here…" She pointed at another area of the image. "This whitened area means her sense of smell is also pretty much up there." She looked at Killian and swallowed. She can't talk, she can't move properly…. But she's got full awareness of everything, Killian. And she can communicate it. As for her magical skills? Well, she can read minds, move things, feel things…"

Killian rolled his eyes to the side, looking at Lilly before turning back to Emma. "And I thought she was just a wee pirate…"

Emma smiled and rubbed her back, lowering her voice. "She really is special… I'm not too brainy, I have no idea where she got such uncanny amounts of smart from…"

"You're smart, Swan!" He frowned.

"Well, yeah, just not… Lilly-smart."

"Killian's pretty smart!" henry quipped. "He can do complex math like it was origami!"

Emma looked at him. "You can?"

"Captain, my love." He winked.

Emma sighed. "I can't even do origami…"

Lilly whined and Killian looked at Emma. "Let me set her down, love, she needs her sleep. We shall continue this in a minute…"

Killian returned to continue analyzing and wowing (and dreading) over the results from Lilly's intellectual and developmental screening.

"Well…" henry nodded. "maybe I should take my sister to school and have her sit instead of me." He grinned. "I can barely do my algebra…"

"Nonsense, lad, you've got the wits for it." Killian grinned. "And you just proved it."

"Could NOT have done it without you." He smiled at Killian as he picked up his books from the table. "Now, this is super interesting, but since I don't have Lilly's super brain, I actually have to study for History and Literature…"

"You know…" Killian paced to him and put an arm around his shoulder. "…my brother one told me that mathematics would find you good employment, but the use of the spoken word and the proper learning of history and culture would woo you a woman, so…" He winked at him. "Best not neglect those either. Off you go."

Henry nodded and went off to his room. He turned around and smiled at Killian. "Thanks a lot… dad."

The door was closed.

Killian and Emma sighed and looked in the direction of the boy's bedroom. Emma looked at her pirate husband and saw a trace of glazed eyes and a pleasant smile. "Yep. You've sort of earned it." She reached up and kiss his cheek. "Come on, let's get lunch started, I'm starving…"


	23. Nicholas

**I AM STOKED, STUMPED AND UNBELIEVABLY DAZED BY THE FACT THIS STORY HAS JUST REACHED THE 200 FOLLOW MARK AND A LITTLE OVER THAT… PLUS OVER 100 FAVES AND 230 PLUS REVIEWS. SERIOUSLY, WHAT HAD STARTED AS A SILLY LITTLE HEADCANON IS NOW THIS AMAZING THING AND I COULDN'T BE HAPPIER, OR MORE GRATEFUL. MY PLAN FOR "LILLY" WASN'T FOR IT TO BE SO LONG, BUT I JUST LOVE SEEING HOW CAPTAIN SWAN EVOLVE AS PROPER PARENTS IN A FAMILY AND WHAT CHALLENGES MAY LIE AHEAD FOR THE LITTLE WHIZ KID THEY'VE FABRICATED… IT SHOULD BE INTERESTING TO SEE WHERE IT ALL GOES WITH LILLYKINS!**

**AS A PROFESSIONAL PSYCHOLOGIST, I FIND THAT SOMETIMES, PEOPLE REALLY CONCEAL THEIR EMOTIONS, AND NEITHER EMMA NOR HOOK HAVE HAD A PROPER CHANCE TO SAY GOODBYE TO THE LITTLE ONE THEY LOST, SO IT WAS BOUND TO COME CRAWLING UP AND BITING THEM IN THE ASS AT SOME POINT. TENSIONS BUILD UP THAT WAY AND VENTING IS SOMETIMES A NASTY BUT NECESSARY BUSINESS. **

**AND AS FOR LILLY… HERE'S WHERE THE STORY STARTS GETTING REALLY INTERESTING. **

**NOW HERE'S A LITTLE THING I WANT TO DO FOR THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN SO, SO, SO, SO DAMN COOL IN FOLLOWING "LILLY":**

**TO CELEBRATE THE 200 + FOLLOWS, I WILL WRITE A ONE SHOT FOR THE FIRST THREE PEOPLE TO SEND IN A PM: YOU WILL BE IN THE STORY! I'LL PAIR YOU UP WITH THE SEXY SKIPPER IN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER! ;) JUST ENCLOSE YOUR FIRST NAME AND YOUR HOBBY AND I'LL TAKE IT FROM THERE.**

**AGAIN, THANKS TO ALL **** AND STAY POSTED! LOT MORE "LILLY" STILL TO GO :D**

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Amazing. This child has to be the most powerful wizard this and any other realm has ever known…" Mr. Gold smiled as he produced a small plush alligator for Lilly, who smiled and giggled as she reached for it. "Funny thing about her parentage, though… especially the father."

Hook huffed; they may have reached a permanent truce, but they were still not each other's favorite person by a long shot. "A crocodile… for my daughter. You are an original one, demon…"

"It's harmless enough." He limped back behind his counter. "And I believe you and your wife still owe me one thousand and eighty two dollars for the glasswork of the display cases your daughter broke."

Emma chuckled. "That's bullshit and you know it, Gold. You just made new glass with a flick of your wrist."

Gold grinned. "I had to try though…." He looked at the little one. "So she writes with cubes and has elevated talents both in biological intelligence as well as in magic…" He looked at the baby who stared back at him from her father's arms. "Can she produce material objects yet?"

"No." Emma shook her head. "She hasn't. Whale told us that while parts of her brain are beyond all logic, other parts are just developing at a natural pace. There are many things she doesn't know, she probably wouldn't know how to make them material."

Gold nodded. "Well, then, if she's anything like her mother, her trigger emotion should be love. So…" He looked at Emma and Hook. "She needs it. Lots of it."

"Not… a problem." Emma smiled and took her from Killian, kissing her cheek.

"Aye, well, love isn't all, Swan." Killian muttered.

"What?" She looked at him.

Killian huffed and turned his face to Rumple's. "We… had a bit of a spat, earlier today."

"Aside from the knowledge that spats with Captain Hook can take drastic turns into nasty feuds that continue on for three hundred years, why would that particular detail of your intimacy be of any concern to me?"

"Because the saucers flew out of the cabinet and smashed against the wall, not to mention that the home appliances that are plugged into the walls for that magic juice called electricity started functioning on their own account at the same time… and three lights were blown." Killian sighed. "Now, it would be ludicrous to assume married life is a walk in the bloody park, we're bound to have spats on occasion, maybe even full-blown arguments, but…"

"We need to know if we need a storm cellar or bulletproof vests to argue in peace." Swan added.

"Aye."

Gold looked at Lilly. "What do you say, little one? It just upsets you to see your mommy and daddy fight, doesn't it?"

She pouted. "Aye."

"Well, seems you two have quite the referee…"

"This is not a joke!" Emma pleaded. "Couples fight! How the hell can we be able to sort our differences out if we don't vent?"

"Wrong business, miss Swan, I believe Dr. Hopper offers good prices on marriage counseling." He pointed at the door. "He's just across the street."

"Look!" Hook held out his hand. "We need, all of us, to find a way to help her get a grip on the things she can do. While she's too bloody smart for her age and has perfect control of what she communicates, she does not harness her magic and believe me, my idea of making up with my wife after a spat does not involve ducking from flying bowls and saucers, mate. Now, is there any way or any information about any other witch that may have started out so early?"

Gold sighed and looked at Lilly. He leaned over and giggled at the sight of her drooling and gnawing away on the head of the crocodile plush. "You are so much like your father, little dearie…" he grinned. "Lilly, can you answer me a question?"

She nodded without a verbal aye; her mouth was too busy.

"Do you notice when you do magic? Make the lights go pop and plates fly?"

She nodded again.

"Very well, missy… and…" He touched the tip of her nose. "Can you do it voluntarily?"

"Bababadaddartsrblrrlbllrbll." She babbled, wiggling the crocodile in her hands as Emma swiftly produced the cubes from her purse. She placed the cubes and the baby on top of the counter and Lilly immediately worked her wording.

SOMETIMES

"I see…" Gold smiled, composed but very visibly astounded. "Quite extraordinary, that you can write. This morning you threw pates at your father…"

"Nononono!" she immediately retorted.

"You did not?"

MISTAKE

"You mean, it was an accident?"

"Aye!"

"Because f course, you wouldn't ever want to harm your father, would you?"

She just whimpered.

Gold stood straight and sighed. "I do have an inkling of who might have been another to have developed such uncanny skill at a very, very early age. Except…" he sneered and held his index up. "You two won't like it."

Hook and Emma exchanged a look.

"Who… are we talking about?" Emma swallowed.

Gold sighed and leaned both hands on his counter before looking straight into the eyes of The Captain and the savior.

"Zelena."

"Aye, well that won't do much good, now, will it, crocodile? She's long gone." Killian shrugged.

"Well…" He turned and unlocked the little cabinet where e kept the most powerful spells, gadgets and potions. "I do recall her going to the past in the shape of some sort of body-less energy, but the only ones who know what happened from that point on, are the two of you. I have no recollection." He produced a little flask. "Now then, since the past is already in the past and the present can no longer be modified by the events that occurred, I am actually willing to ingest this… if only to learn what became of that woman."

"I still don't get it, what good would it do?" Emma shook her head and shrugged. "It's not like she'd sit with us over a latte and tell us all we need to know about our daughter, even if she were still alive, which I highly doubt…"

"Doubters… make good believers, Miss Swan." Gold smiled. "Even if she were dead, I find it important to discover what her final fate was. Do you know…" He turned to look at Hook. "…that every good sorcerer has an evil counterpart? A carbon copy of his or her particular talents. You, miss Swan, are MY counterpart; while I am indeed the Dark One, you are the product of true love and the savior, a witch of light. And once you fully harness your magic, you and I will be equals…" he shrugged. "In different ways. So I am putting my money on Lilly being Zelena's counterpart." He looked at the baby girl and she grinned at him. "I am starting to believe the reason she is the way she is, is not only because of who she came from and why she came to be… but also because, during her ritual, Zelena rather… connected with her."

"Holy crap." Emma sighed. "Like Harry Potter and Lord Voldemort?"

"Quite." Gold nodded.

"Wait, did I miss something?" Killian sneered. "Who is this Harry Potter chap?"

Emma frowned at him. "He's a wizard."

"So where do we find him? He should know about this!"

Gold shook his head. "Blast the utter lack of technology on pirate ships…" He sighed.

"He's … not real." Emma shrugged. "He's a movie wizard, but he and Lord Voldemort, he was the villain by the way, had a connection and kind of shared a soul and…"

"Here you go again, Emma, just like captain Von Trapp and Marty McFly, you can't exemplify life with fictitious characters!"

Emma huffed and placed both her hands on her hips. "Well, excuse me! Up until two years ago YOU were a fictitious character, _Captain Hook_!"

"The fact that this blasted realm chose to portray me as such, does NOT make me at all fictitious, my darling Swan." He replied though gritted teeth. "And I am certainly a damn sight more tangible as a "fictitious character" than all the blokes you previously engaged congress with!"

"Wait wait, are you saying I can't do any better?"

"Oh well, I am sure you can!"

"You're damn right I can!"

"Good! I knew you were with me only because you had to "settle"! After all, he's only a bloody one handed idiot bastard! You, my dear, have always been incapable of…"

"HOW THE HELL DARE YOU!" She shoved him. "You have NO fucking right to say that to me!"

"WELL YOU'RE THE ONE SAYING YOU CAN FIND A BETTER MAN, WELL, WHY DON'T YOU!?"

Lilly's lip was starting to quiver and Gold silently placed a protection spell over his new glass cabinets.

"Are you actually telling me that the only reason I am with you is because I gave up on other guys?"

"Better ones, perhaps!"

Lilly finally cried aloud and the lights began to flicker.

"You have some damn nerve Hook!"

"Pirate, remember?"

"Yeah, true, and I should have remembered that all the hell along!"

"What the hell are you saying Swan?"

She was about to retort when suddenly a converter outside blew and the lights went out. Lamps, dolls, candles, Ouija boards and all sorts of trinkets starting falling over, till one flew straight into the back of Hook's head, knocking him to his knees on the floor.

Emma turned an angered face at Lilly. "LILLY JONES, YOU JUST HURT YOUR FATHER, YOU SEE? NOW, YOU STOP THAT RIGHT NOW!" She smacked her open hand on the cabinet in front of her.

Lilly's eyes widened and she was suddenly not just mortified, but looked scared of Emma. Things continued to fly around. By then, Gold was hiding behind the cabinets.

The baby girl erupted into a full blown screaming frenzy and Emma was shocked to feel the very foundation beneath her feet.

Emma turned all around her before turning to her daughter. "Lilly, baby, I'm sorry… I am! I was just…"

"Just stop it, Swan…" Killian crawled up from the floor and risked standing upright amidst the chaos of flying objects. He took Lilly in his arms. "Come, Lilly… there… there, little one, shhh…" He kissed her head. "All is well, my wee one… shhh…"

It took Lilly about a minute to calm down and everything settled. Gold slowly emerged from behind the counter and smiled. "Well, has to be said, life in the Jones household must be anything but boring."

Emma was panting while Killian cradled Lilly in his arms, still soothing her. She saw blood trickle down his temple. "Oh, God. You're bleeding…" She reached out to touch his head, but Killian pulled away and looked up into her eyes.

"I'm… not so much worried about my broken head as I am about my broken heart there, savior, so… just leave off for a bit."

"Killian…"

"No Swan. Just… no." He shook his head and turned to leave the shop, Lilly still crying.

Emma remained there, closing her eyes and feeling every bit the jerk she had just acted as. She then turned to rumple. "You're right…" she spoke softly, feeling tears in her eyes. "You need to find out what became of Zelena. We need answers." She swallowed and looked to the floor as she walked out.

She sat by the docks for hours, just staring at the bay, wondering what the hell had happened.

Just before sunset, Killian finally joined her. "Swan…"

"Hi." She replied softly.

With a sigh, he sat beside her. "Are you not coming home this night? If you want it so, I can stay at the B&B for as long as you need me to, so you can go home and…"

Emma clucked her lips and shut her eyes tight. "Don't… no, no…" She sighed and looked to the floor. "I was completely out of line, Killian. I just…" she looked up at the sea before her. "I'm sitting here and I'm thinking that you… gave up the Jolly Roger for me. And I'm still not over it."

She turned her face to him and found him stern, but attentively listening to her, like he always did. "We have this kid, this, beautiful, amazing kid… and believe me, I love her… I love her more than I could ever begin to explain." Tears finally brewed in her eyes. "But you, you're… resourceful, talented, great at math, a hell of a captain and good looking to boot. What the hell am I?" She sobbed. "She certainly didn't get her wits form me! She doesn't even look like me! And you gave up your ship for me Hook, and what the hell have I done for you? It took me ages to stop treating you like shit and I still do that every time I feel inadequate, like it was your fault!" She sobbed. "And even through you made it clear I shouldn't, I can't help thinking I couldn't even hold your baby in me! Like, what the hell am I? I am nothing, Killian, and you have done everything and I can't even…"

"Swan stop it!" he shook her suddenly by the shoulders. "Stop it right now, ok?"

He released her and ran a hand through his hair as he huffed angrily. "Look, I know you're scared. It is to be expected. You think I'm not scared? Emma!" He looked back at her. "I am terrified out of my mind! She's much more than ANY regular parent could have! But for the love of all things sacred, love, you are NOT unfit or inadequate in any way to be her mother. As for the child we lost, it happened Emma! The child is gone, and we have to deal with that, all right?"

Emma broke down fully and shook her head before looking up into his eyes. "I am not with you because I had to settle," she sobbed. "I'm with you because I'm crazy in love with you! And Please, never tell me to find someone else, don't even think about it! I don't want anyone else… I'm the one that's terrified you'll leave me any day, that you'll regret selling your ship for a bean and that you'll think this is just too much and…"

He finally reached out and touched her shoulder. "Swan…"

She suddenly fell into his embrace, even if uninvited, and he immediately wrapped both arms around her. "Listen, love… We can do this, all right? We can. I've all the faith on the world in you and in us." He caressed her hair. "All this… hurtful folly we just exchanged, was just us blowing off steam, because I will agree with you…" He chuckled. "As much as I love that little girl, I have to say, learning about all her abilities and her magic has been rather unsettling."

"Yeah…" she sniffed and then started sobbing hard agan. "Oh, god, I shouted at her! Killian, I shouted at a little baby girl, what kind of monster am I?" she looked up into his eyes. "You should have seen the way she looked at me!"

"Well, you were rather scary, I'll agree with her on that." He removed the hair from her face. "But she's smart, darling, she'll understand you were mad and she will forgive you. As will I… if you agree to forgive me for asking you to do better…" He kissed her forehead. "It was a dire, appalling and awful thing to say to you."

"I'd never leave you." She shrugged, settling down.

"Nor would I leave you, either…"

She raised her teary-eyed face to him and grinned. "I think I'm also till upset about the baby…."

"Of course you are darling…" he squeezed her. "As am I. But we just have to get on. You didn't know, I am well aware that, had you known, you'd have moved the heavens to try and save it before that bloody thing punctured its sack. But you had no way of knowing, my love, so just let it be. We've enough in our hands to have to deal with the little one's ghost…" he sighed. "He had to move on and so do we."

Emma frowned. "He?"

He nodded silently.

"How do you know he was a he?"

Killian had hoped never to have to talk to Emma or anyone about this, ever. But she needed to know… and he needed it out of his system. "When I cleaned up the bathroom for you to come home, love, there… there was…"

Emma gasped. "Oh god, he was…?"

"Aye." Killian smiled very, very sadly. "No bigger than my thumb…. But he was perfectly formed."

Emma stared at him as he gazed out into the ocean. "why didn't you tell me about this sooner?"

He shrugged. "You had enough on your hands, Emma. You still do."

She caressed his hair. "You do too…" As he looked down, she held on to him. "What did you do with him?" She whispered.

He sighed. "I… finished cleaning and then, before going to collect you from the hospital, I took a detour. I wrapped him in a little hand cloth and.." He shrugged. "I went to the place where Bae's remains rest for all times. I laid the little one to rest beside him."

He was crying by then.

"He's buried next to Neal?" Emma sniffed.

"Aye." He swallowed, squeezing her. "I… named him, too. I hope you don't mind, love… I figured, if he was our child, he deserved a name to be remembered by."

"Oh… Killian…" She sighed, now tearless, as she continued to hold him. "Of course I don't mind. What did you name him?"

Killian grinned. "Nicholas…"

She smiled too. "That's a great name."

"I won't lie to you, Swan…" He spoke softly. "I've lived to see all sorts of monstrosities, but I've never had to do anything quite as gut wrenching as that. It hurt deep in places I had no idea were in me."

They remained silent for a minute.

"Killian?"

"Mh?"

"Where's Lilly?"

Killian nodded. "She's with her brother. She's sleeping. Apparently, doing these things that she can't control is rather exhausting for her."

"I have an idea."

"And what's that, my darling?"

She turned a sad, but smiling face to him. "Show me. Show me where you buried Nicholas, and we'll put some flowers down for him and for Neal."

He caressed her face. "I'm sorry I hadn't told you, sweetheart."

She chuckled. "Given the state I'm in, I can't blame you." She kissed his cheek. "You can't do this alone, Killian, and neither can I. Please…" She begged. "Take me to see him."

Killian huffed and nodded. "As you wish, my love."

They walked to the edge of the forest where Neal lay and Emma immediately noticed the small area where the earth had been stirred. Killian had actually set up a marker with a medium sized rock, where he had carved his unborn son's initials: N.J.

Emma sighed and sat before the little impromptu grave, and was surprised to find she wasn't as devastated as she thought she'd be; quite the contrary, the setting was perfect. It was a peaceful spot in the forest and at the right hour the sun filtered through the treetops and showered the area with a soothing, white glow.

She felt Killian kneel behind her and he placed some bluebells he had obviously just plucked from the area.

Neither the pirate nor the savior wept. They just sat together grinning, just being together and saying a proper goodbye to little Nicholas.

After returning home and after Emma apologized to her daughter for shouting at her, everyone had dinner together in peace. And just before Killian tucked her to bed, Lilly managed to write one more thing with her blocks.

NOT FEAR

He smiled. "No, little love. Your mother and I have sorted ourselves out. And I promise you we will never again brawl like that, especially not in front of you."

He then went to check on Henry, who had fallen asleep with a copy of Walt Whitman's best on his chest. He grinned and pulled the blankets up on the boy, and deposited a gentle kiss on his head before turning off his light and going in to meet Emma.

He held the poetry book in his hand. "Is this any good, Emma?"

She looked at him and grinned. "Are you kidding me? Best American poet ever. You'd like him. Where did you find that?"

Killian opened it at random page. "Henry had it, fell asleep while reading it."

"Awww, he's reading poetry?" Emma put a hand on her chest. "My son is…" he gave her a wry look and Emma grinned. "Sorry. OUR son is reading poetry now?"

Killian read and suddenly his eyebrows rose way high. "And I can see why the bloody hell he does!" He smiled and Emma saw his face go from amused to downright lewd. He turned to her. "Listen to this, Swan: _A woman waits for me, she contains all, nothing is lacking,__yet all were lacking if sex were lacking, or if the moisture of the__  
><em>_right man were lacking…._"

"WHAT?" Emma gasped.

Killian's smile was wide and it was easy to see he was unbelievably amused. "It just gets better, Swan!" He continued. " _I __pour the stuff to start sons and daughters fit for these States, I press with slow rude muscle, I brace myself effectually, I listen to no entreaties,  
>I dare not withdraw till I deposit what has so long accumulated within me. Through you I drain the pent-up rivers of myself, in you I…."<em>

"Ok, Henry's reading this stuff?" Emma barked. "Really?"

Killian shrugged. "Well, he is thirteen, love. He's bound to have started developing a sweet tooth for this particular topic…" he continued reading. "Besides, I find neither sin nor wantonness in this poem. It's a rather… nice approach on lovemaking, as it happens…" he read on before Emma's bemused face, flopping down on the bed. "_I count on the fruits of the gushing showers I give you now, I shall look for loving crops from the birth, life, death and immortality I plant so lovingly now…_"

As soon as he finished, his eyes trailed up to Emma's and he found himself being stared back at with unbelievable green shades of thought. He swallowed hard and placed the book down, stood up and walked around their bed, to where Emma was standing, simply looking into his soul. Silently, and without another word, he proceeded to help her undo the buttons of her blouse as she did his shirt.

Their lips met.

As did their bodies.

They lay together… really together, and it wasn't until that moment that they both actually realized they hadn't made love since Nicholas.

Visiting the little one's resting place had healed them finally.

As he lay on top of her, catching his breath, droplets fo sweat on their faces as they both struggled to remain closely interlocked, Killian smiled and spoke into her ear.

"_A woman waits for me, she contains all, nothing is lacking,__yet all were lacking if sex were lacking, or if the moisture of the right man were lacking…._" He smiled and leaned his forehead on hers. "Guess who Mr. Whitman must have been talking about…"

"Good memory!"

"Aye, well…" He drew a final sigh as he felt every last drop of himself be completely spent, withdrawing from her to settle on top of her and not really wanting to ever withdraw at all. "You do make me want to scream that line from the crow's nest of a frigate ship…"

Emma smiled and wrapped her arms around his head as he settled down on her chest. "You're definitely the right man."

"Then fate has seen fit and has favored us with good fortune, Emma… I love you."

She smiled. "I love you too…"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

He remembered. The potion had worked.

He remembered Emma and Hook, how he'd nearly killed him, how he placed them all in a concealed cabin for six months, how he had dressed them for a royal ball… and how Zelena had threatened them even then. He also knew what he had done with her.

It's not that he feared retaliation form Zelena; she was quite powerless and as long as she had no dagger, he could still have a decent duel with her; rather, he feared that in order to solve the mystery that was Lilly Jones, he had to let her go, and to do so meant releasing the other prisoner that was held captive in that cold urn.

Elsa.


	24. Kind-hearted

**OK, JUST A QUICK NOTE: THE PREMIERE IS TOMORROW (OR TODAY, DEPENDS ON WHICH SIDE OF THE PLANET YOU ARE RIGHT NOW) AND I STILL HAVE NO DEFINITE IDEA WHERE THE WRITERS WILL BE TAKING THE WHOLE FROZEN PLOT; WHILE I DO HAVE VAGUE NOTIONS OF IT, I HAVE NO FULL KNOWLEDGE OF IT. I HAVE TRIED TO GUIDE "LILLY" AS A STORY BASED ON THE SHOW WITH THE TWIST OF THE JONESES BEING TOGETHER AS A FAMILY NOW. SO IF I WANT TO KEEP THE PACE I'VE BEEN KEEPING, I MIGHT HAVE TO BREAK THAT PARTICULAR PATTERN OF BEING 80% TRUE TO THE SHOW'S CHRONOLOGY SO I HOPE YOU DON'T MIND IF THIS WEEK I FOLLOW ONE LINE AND NEXT WEEK'S SHOW TURNS OUT TO BE COMPLETELY DIFFERENT. JUST THOUGHT I'D GIVE THIS LITTLE HEADS UP BECAUSE SOME FAN FIC READERS LIKE TO KEEP THESE LITTLE CHANGES AS CLOSE TO THE ORIGINAL IDEA AS POSSIBLE.**

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Blow your candles, Emma! Make a wish!" Mrs. Bailey smiled at the now twelve year old orphan, the only one that hadn't been placed in a foster home yet, nor had she been adopted, because every time she had been, they turned her back, saying she was weird and made "weird stuff happen".

Suffice to say, she had a lot to wish for.

She sighed deep, thinking of the little girl, Melanie, who had been adopted and taken home by a beautiful couple a day before. The oldest girl in the group home, Emma always felt joy for the little ones that found a home, but it always crushed her to realize she was always the inadequate one, the ugly duckling, the one nobody wanted. "Don't worry… you'll find your home too, Emma." She said kindly to her before returning indoors after waving Melanie goodbye.

But Emma sternly believed she'd never find a home: Who would want someone like her, anyway?

She blew her candles, and wished for the same thing she wished every birthday.

That she at least wouldn't be alone.

Since Emma hardly ever messed with the other girls (even more so after she realized she was kind of… strange), as soon as everyone had their share of cake and jello, they went to bed, but not before Mrs. Bailey gave Emma a little flower medallion that had belonged to her mother. It was not a rich jewel, made of gold or silver… but nobody had ever regaled Emma with a single damn thing, so a sincere smile appeared on her face as Mrs. Bailey clipped the little chain behind Emma's neck.

After bathing and drying her long, golden hair, Emma unclipped the chain and smiling, set it down on her bedside table, turned out her light and slept.

The next morning, it was gone.

Emma was distraught; she went straight to Mrs. Bailey in tears and told her that someone, she didn't know who, had taken her present.

"It is but a cheap little thing, Emma…. The important thing is… how it made you feel for a minute." She replied kindly.

Nonetheless, Emma was terribly distraught; she had never received a gift before and to have it stolen so early after she had obtained it was heart wrenching.

A few hours later, she found it… on the neck of Melissa winters, a girl of eleven, whom she had always had beefs with.

Something clicked in Emma's head as she hurried over to Melissa and gave her a shive. "THIEF!" she shouted. "It was you!"

Melissa pushed her back. "This is too pretty for you, Swan!"

"I don't care, it's mine, now give it back!"

"Or WHAT?!" The brunette leaned her face close to Emma's nose and placed her hands on her hips.

"So help me Melissa, I WILL rip it from you if I have to, now give… it… back!" Emma hissed.

At close range, Melissa spat on her face, and her friends all laughed as Emma flinched back and tripped over a short bush hedge that divided the garden from the concrete play area of the orphanage. Landing on her butt, being spat on and having her precious little flower taken from her, all in a single day? Was there a god up there, or what?

Melissa laughed and paced to her, kicking some dirt in Emma's direction. "Swan? HA! You're more like the ugly duckling! You know what? You're twelve, which means that NOBODY wants you! You'll never get adopted, Swan. Like, ever!"

Emma felt her chin quiver, her teeth grounding into each other and her eyes dark as she looked up at Melissa from under an angrily furrower brow; her hands shook as they clenched into fists. She stood up and paced to Melissa. "You have one… last… chance." She hissed. "Give it back to me NOW."

"Yeah? Well, guess what? I kinda like the way it looks on MY neck better than yours. Why waste such a pretty little pendant on such an ugly neck? Naaa, I think I'm keeping it. Thanks, Emma. It is SO pretty." She turned around and her posse of friends laughed as they all walked behind Melissa.

Then it happened.

Emma wished, hoped to have something, some way to hurt the girl… so she closed her eyes and, as tears rolled down her face, she could have sworn she felt Melissa's neck in her hand. She squeezed… and squeezed….

"MELISSA! WAKE UP!"

"MRS. BAILEY! HEEELP!"

When she herd the cries, Emma opened her eyes and saw in horror that Melissa was lying on the floor and her friends had kneeled around her, trying to blow air to her.

She gasped and covered her mouth.

Melissa rose not three seconds later, holding her neck. She turned to look at Emma from a distance, as did the others, and sneered at her with anger and disgust. "Y… you're a freak!"

"Freak! Freak! Freak!" They all started shouting.

Emma turned her terrified eyes in every direction, where all the other girls had joined in to call her a freak.

"Ok, what's happing here?" Mrs. Bailey ran out. All the girls turned into silence as Melanie pointed her finger at Emma. "She's a freak! I don't want her to come near me. Weird stuff happens every time she's around!"

"She stole my pendant!" Emma wept as she walked to them. "The one you gave me for my birthday!"

"Emma, sweetie…" Mrs. Bailey sighed. "You're wearing it…"

Emma frowned and touched her neck and, sure enough, the flower pendant was there.

Melissa's eyes shot wide open and she sneered in shock.

"What happened, Emma? What did you do?"

Emma turned to Mrs. Bailey. "N… nothing! I didn't even touch her!"

"She's a witch!" another girl barked.

Linda Hughes also chimed in. "Yeah, she is! She made me slip and that's when I hit my head on the sink! She's evil!"

Emma burst into tears and shook her head. "No… no…."

"Ok, that's enough, you guys, I saw Emma standing over there, so she didn't even touch you, Melissa. This is all over. All of you go back to whatever you were doing." She turned to Emma. "Swan, please come with me."

Contrite, Emma followed her… and Melanie tripped her over as she did.

As Emma fell, everyone once again burst into hysterical laughter.

Emma turned on the floor and saw how Melanie mouthed an "oops" with a mocking smirk.

A sudden gush of wind began to twirl in the courtyard; Emma's eyes were still fixed on Melissa when the basketball hoop that was right above her head suddenly became unhinged and fell smack on Melissa's head.

This time, she was unconscious… and although Emma was pretty sure she was probably the cause, she wasn't sorry to see Melissa being carried away in an ambulance.

Two days and six head stitches later, Melissa returned. And this time, she made sure she stayed the hell away from Emma Swan. And her necklace.

As a matter of fact, everyone there made a point of staying away from her permanently.

So her wish to never be alone, as always, didn't come true. Melissa was right.

No one would ever want her.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The meeting took place at the Charmings' loft.

"So… let me see if I understand this: You put her… in a jar?" Killian winced. "The most cunning evil witch you could have trained, the one who outsmarted you and all… is in a jar."

Rumple sighed. "It's not just 'a jar', pirate, it's a magical urn. It is designed to still time for those who are cursed to remain within it."

"Sounds like Storybrooke…" Mary Margaret sighed.

Regina stood up and walked as she sighed deep. "Well, the question now isn't how she got in there, but how she can be extracted in a safe way for us to figure out how to help you two." She turned to Rumple. "Is there a way to create some sort of protection spell? Or a bubble or…?"

Rumple shook his head. "I doubt we'd need it. Most of her power had been spent by the time I got to her. Nevertheless…" He raised his finger. "It's not Zelena that I'm worried about."

Emma frowned. "Then what?"

"Well…" He paused. "That urn has another… inhabitant. If I open it to retrieve Zelena… chances are the other tenant will also be let out, and believe me…" He shook his head. "That is one witch you don't want in Storybrooke."

Everyone scorned.

"Wh… who are we talking about?" Regina raised a hand.

Rumple sighed. "Elsa. The Snow Queen."

Henry gasped. "Wowww! She's real?" Everyone turned their heads to Henry.

"You know of her, Henry?" Rumple enquired.

Emma sighed. "We saw the movie Frozen last year in New York. He's a fan. We even had a video game."

"There's a movie about that witch?" David looked at Emma.

"Elsa is not exactly villainous, but she is definitely a very unstable young queen who has absolutely no control over her own magic. That makes her a liability." He looked at all of them. "She is as dangerous as they come."

"Wait…" Killian raised his hand. "Queen Elsa?"

"You know about her?" Snow asked the pirate.

"She's… the estranged relative of the king accountable for my brother's early demise." He sighed. "King Hans."

"Hans became a king?" Emma sneered, wide-eyed.

"That's NOT the candy floss Disney finale, for sure..:" Henry sighed.

2wait, wait.." Regina pressed her lips together. "You're… not from the enchanted forest, Captain?"

Everyone stared at Killian. "N… no…" he returned the scrutinizing gaze evenly. "I was born elsewhere, why? Is it relevant?"

"Are you an Arendellian, pirate?" Gold asked coldly.

"Aye, what of it?"

While it was a bit of interesting news, everyone also seemed to wonder why it was so important.

"It could mean the key." Regina nodded as she paced to Hook. "Did you just say… she was estranged?"

"Aye… the people were told that… the Queen had died after freezing the village. She'd been killed for treason and genocide, or so we were all told. Her sister and her beau rose to the throne and … well… the snow and ice melted and Queen Anna and King Hans claimed power." He huffed a deep sigh. "He appeared to be gallant and fair… but believe me, he was a weasel of the worst sort, and a coward. My brother and I served under his fleet. He wanted us to bring vast amounts of Dreamshade, fooled us under the guise of a hero's journey to retrieve a medical shrub, just so he could poison his enemies in bad form. Craven ruler…." He licked his lips. "After Liam died and I took the Jolly Roger, he set a price on my head for treason and piracy, so…" He shrugged. "I sort of found better waters to sail without the scavenging pursuit of the bounty hunters. I traded a ton of treasure for a magic bean and sailed to the Enchanted Forest." He turned to look at Rumple. "So somehow, it now turns out the true queen of Arendelle is alive, and you stuffed her in that jar of yours…"

"It's… an… urn." Rumple closed his eyes with an exasperated huff. "And yes, I did."

Everyone nodded. "Well, she does sound like a bit of a cad." David quipped as he crossed his arms.

"She was tricked." Rumple smiled. "Tricked by the same villainous king the captain her has just spoken of. He wed the younger princess, Anna, and that immediately entitled him to the throne."

Regina paced to him. "So… he struck a deal with YOU… to put her in the urn."

"No." He smiled. "She asked to be placed in the urn."

Emma frowned and shook her head as she rubbed the pinch of her brow with her index and thumb. "This is NOT my life."

"So she wanted to be put away because…" Henry enquired.

"She had no control of her abilities." Rumple shrugged. " People were dying… her people. She had also hurt her sister. So she found me in the Enchanted Forest and asked me for help. The urn is rather comfortable on the inside, she wanted nothing… and the three hundred years she has been there have probably felt like only a few days to her." He sighed. "I have no idea how she crossed from her realm to the enchanted Forest, but I do know her kingdom had trade with them; the wood from the ships was made of Enchanted Wood."

Emma sighed and looked down. "That's… not right." Everyone turned to her. "What?"

"Miss Swan, we're talking about a very young woman who can freeze an entire country and who cannot control her skill to produce the foulest weather ever. She walks and leaves an icy trail, she has no emotional control over her particular brand of magic and disaster occurs in her wake. Therefore, my suggestion is…" He looked at all of them. "Lets leave Elsa and Zelena where they are, and let's all just find a way to guide young Lilly to learn how to control her abilities, shall we?"

"I will second that." Regina nodded.

"But she shouldn't be imprisoned for…. Being different!" Emma pleaded. "She has a skill she can't control, and so did I, but now… things are different! We're talking about teaching Lilly to handle her magic, but we're also suggesting to continue the imprisonment of a woman for… the same thing?"

"I agree, it's not right." Snow shook her head, looking down at the floor.

"Well, seems you have stirred up the masses, Miss Swan, as usual."

"But she's right, Regina!" Hook blurted. "Queen Elsa was NOT the one to freeze Arendelle, we all knew of it. There was another… a witch, a mighty evil sorcerer… as a pirate I became privy to the confession of the treasurer of king Hans, and… this woman? He had allied with her to freeze the city over so he could incriminate the queen. She apparently has some sort of… connection to the rightful queen, but…" He shook his head. "I regret I know little more than just that." he looked up at Prince Charming. "She should be allowed to be free. And be taught how to master and restraint her own power, like Emma did and like we're trying to do for our Lilly now…"

David nodded. "Yeah, I agree with the pirate."

"Well, aren't you an adorable treat, mate." Killian smiled at David, who rolled his eyes back to Gold, but smiled as well.

"Nevertheless.." Gold shook his head. "I will NOT jeopardize Storybrooke or it's inhabitants by releasing both Zelena AND Elsa without a containment plan. I have no interest in having my wife or myself exposed to the possibility of an ice age. So… care to work with me on this, madam mayor?"

"Gladly." Regina nodded coldly.

While Killian, Emma, The Charmings and Henry did not like the notion of keeping a good ruler and an innocent woman a prisoner, they did agree on the fact that it would be important to have a backup plan before cracking the urn and setting two highly volatile and powerful witches on the loose.

After waking Lilly from sharing a nap with her uncle Neal, the Joneses left. Stopping for dinner and a much needed cup of hot cocoa at Granny's, they all talked about the events of the meeting. Lilly made a deliciously messy piece of art with her own face and chocolate pudding while Emma, Henry and Hook discussed. Over apple cobblers and cheesecake. "I'm sorry, I just… can't agree with even referring to that poor woman as a liability!" She frowned. "Believe me, I know a thing or two about being the local freak and doing things to others by accident, and trust me, it's not an easy life."

Killian huffed in his very trademark way. "As you grew, love? In the system?"

Emma shook her head at the memories. "Yeah. I got picked on a lot. Then I'd get piss…"She looked at Lilly who delivered a risen-eyebrow stare, and then smiled. "Sorry, I meant angry. I'd get angry and strange stuff started to happen." She sighed. "People would get hurt. I'm telling you, it's a hard thing, getting over guilt and accepting that you're the one that caused certain…. Accidents."

"Well, we're with you a hundred percent." Henry smiled with a nod. "Right, dad?"

Killian still smiled whenever Henry called him that. "Right you are, lad. Lilly, dear? What do you think?"

The little girl rolled her eyes over to her father babbled angrily and merely returned to her chocolate pudding.

"I guess sometimes, chocolate really IS a priority!" Emma smiled as she took her napkin and soaked a wrapped finger in her glass of water, turning to clean the smears form Lilly's face. "God, look at you!" She giggled.

Hook laughed and turned back to his family. "Well, the bottom line is, the only one who can possibly ever open that urn is The Dark One; hence, we must find a way to help this little young lady get a grip on her magic." He turned to Lilly's baby seat. " Lilly, darling, want a glass of milk with that?"

"Aye!"

Emma raised both her eyebrows at her daughter. "Okay, now I know you do know how to use the magic word now, sweetie?"

Lilly sighed and nodded swiftly before turning back to her father. "Aye, peez."

"Much better, cupcake!" Killian smiled and raised his hand to ask Ruby to fetch Lilly a small cup of warm milk.

"Anyway, on a different topic…" Henry smiled and turned to look at his sister. "It'll be someone's birthday tomorrow!"

Lilly wiggled her hands up and down excitedly. She was so baby-like in so many ways, it was boggling to think that she had perfect knowledge and understanding of language and knew how to use it.

"Oh, that's right!" Killian smiled at his daughter. "Someone's turning two, tomorrow!"

Emma tickled her tummy lightly and smiled at her daughter. "What do you want to do tomorrow, Lillykins?"

"Bababafshdnabababrrr."

"Henry, pass her the cubes…." Emma smiled at her son, who reached into his backpack to produce Lilly's mode of communication.

Instantly, she began to move them around.

BEACH PICNIC.

Killian laughed with a smile. "My little sea siren. What do you say, Swan? Want to go home and make sandwiches?"

"Sounds like a plan!" She grinned and kissed her daughter.

As they paid the bill, they set her down and she ran from table to table, charming the patrons with friendly babble and smiles, because she was, in her dad's words, "devilishly beautiful".

And she truly was.

Emma stood up and grabbed her hand while Killian paid Granny. "We'll wait for you guys in the bug!" She smiled as she pushed the door and exited the diner. As she and Lilly talked (babbled) and walked around the curb, Emma suddenly heard the distinct sound of a gun getting cocked right behind her head.

She stopped cold.

"Ok, lady, now turn slowly…"

She complied and was horrified to see the assailant, whose face was covered with a bandana, was now aiming his gun at the little girl. She felt her knees start to rattle but she remained stern and cool; this wasn't the first time a gun had been aimed at her; but one thing was her own life, and Lilly's was quite another.

"Good, now… hand over your wallet and your cell phone, car keys, your earrings and that big blue ring of yours, or well… let's just say I'm kind of trigger happy tonight and I really won't think twice about rearranging your kid's face."

Normally, this would be the moment where Emma would have kicked the man in the groin and managed to wrestle the gun from him, but seeing the cannon so close to Lilly's head, made her blood pressure drop to near zero as she reached for her wallet and handed it over.

"Please, don't hurt her…" Emma whispered.

"Shut the fuck up and just do as you're told! And hurry!"

Emma was shaking hard and had difficulty pulling the car keys from her pocket.

The streetlights began to flicker.

Lilly looked at the man with massive, blue eyes… but didn't seem to even be flustered one little bit, strangely enough. The man turned his face to the baby and sneered. "What the hell are you looking at, kid?"

Lilly remained stoic.

"I said, what the hell are you looking at?"

"Leave her alone, she's just a baby!"

"Hey! Bitch! You're supposed to be giving me your car keys, now I'm really getting pissed off!" He literally grabbed Lilly from the floor and took the gun to her head as he pressed her to himself.

"NO, NO!" Emma shook. She saw Killian and Henry from behind, standing still.

"Wait! Don't!" Killian also pleaded.

"Stupid fucking woman, now see what you've done…" He gnarled at Emma. "Now, you have exactly ten seconds to give me the car keys, or this little shit dies… ten… nine… "

Emma fiddled around, her pulse shaky and hyperventilating, unable to find the keys.

"…eight… seven…"

Lights flickered even more.

"Swan…. Please…"

"I… can't… find them!" Emma felt teary eyed and had pretty much lost control of her movements.

"Mom!"

"…six … five… four…" He tugged at Lilly. "I fucking mean it!"

"No… please!" Emma begged.

Lilly was calmer than they'd ever expected her to be.

"SWAN!"

"three… two…"

"NO!"

The streetlights exploded with a showdown of yellow and white sparkles that fell from the top like a shower of gold dust. The hydrant behind them blew upwards and the steel cap was launched straight into the man's back. He was knocked over and dropped Lilly just as he fell. The little girl ran to her very distraught mother, who held her in her arms, crying. Killian ran to the stunned assailant and began to wrestle with him as Henry also ran to his mother, hugging both his sister and Emma.

A single shot was heard.

The assailant stood and ran, but suddenly Lilly just gave a quick nod and the man stumbled and fell, finding himself tied up by, of all things, his own shoelaces and the lace of his hoodie.

But Killian was on the floor… groaning.

Emma was panting hard. "Oh, no no no…" She began to weep. "Henry, stay here with your sister."

Henry nodded, his face in panic. But Lilly remained cool.

Emma slid down next to Killian. "Killian?" She wept.

The pirate was breathing shallow. He looked up at Emma and the pain was etched in his face, his hand over his liver area. "S… Swan…" he groaned as he removed his hand.

There was a lot of blood coming out.

"Oh… god." Emma gasped. She reached for her phone, but the hogtied assailant had kept it in his pocket. "Oh, shit… what…"

"damn, that hurts…" He hissed, only this time, without a hint of humor.

He was fast growing cold and losing color and consciousness. "Emma… I love you…"

"No … No no, don't!" Emma shouted at him. "You DON'T say goodbye to me just yet!"

Just then Emma felt Lilly calmly standing by her side.

"Sorry mom, she wrestled herself free…" Henry caught up with her and tried to pull her back again.

"Nononono!" Lilly screamed and turned back to her father on the floor. "Daddy sick…"

They looked at her, stunned. Emma then nodded. "Yeah, honey…. He's very sick." Just them, Emma remembered what Lilly had done after she lost Nicholas. She turned to the little girl. "Sweetie… you… remember when mommy was sick and you… you cured her?"

Lilly nodded silently. Killian was fading.

"Can you… can you cure your daddy?" She wept.

Lilly smiled and caressed Emma's face. "Mommy pretty." She then turned to Killian and slumped herself down on the floor beside his face. "Badadada, daddy sick…"

She leaned in and gave Killian a gentle kiss on the forehead.

"Lilly…" He whispered a barely audible whisper.

The child sighed an audibly baby sigh as she pouted, reaching over and touching the area where her father bled. Killian grunted and shouted in pain… and within ten seconds, he was blinking awake, the color coming back to his face.

Emma laughed with relief through her tears as Killian touched his wound in disbelief. He then leaned up on his elbow and looked at Lilly, who was grinning her nose-wrinkling grin. "Daddy no sick."

He was lost for words as he cupped his little girl's face in his good hand. "My angel…"

"A… are you ok?" A teary eyed Henry blurted.

"Yeah, kid, he's fine." Emma smiled, holding Killian's head to her chest. She then turned to Lilly. "Baby… You saved your daddy!"

"Aye."

As Killian got on his feet, he looked at the blood on the floor. "That's odd…" He sighed. "I feel no weakness."

This child was beyond incredible.

Emma paced angrily over to the man who lay, tied up, a few meters away. "You… fucked with the sheriff's family, asshole!"

"That… I swore I got the man's brisket, how's that even possible…?" He blurted in astonishment as Emma swiftly picked him up. "That damn kid's a freak!"

Emma's eyes widened, and lights once again began to flicker as she threw him on the floor and kicked his ribs. "You do NOT call my daughter a freak!"

"MOMMY NO!"

Emma stopped her rampage and found Lilly standing behind her, her eyes finally tearing up. She toddled to the man. "Bad man!" She pointed at the man. "Bad, bad, bad man." He then looked at her, pleadingly. "Mommy good. Peez?"

In that second, Emma's entire vision of life changed; her two-year-old daughter was teaching her a lesson on control that she, apparently, hadn't ever learned. And it seemed that this time, the little girl had managed to control everything while she had pretty much lost her head.

Lilly had it all under control.

She sighed and went down on her knees. "You're right. Mommy's good. " She grinned and hugged the little girl. "Mommy's good…"

Killian and Henry paced towards the scene.

"You should be dead, man!"

"Be quiet, fiend." Killian hissed. He also went down on his knees and smiled at his daughter. "You're a bloody hero now, Lilly Jones." He smiled and hugged her hard. "Thank you, my love…."

Henry sighed and helped his mother drag the perp to the car (her keys had actually been in her hands all along). She then drove him to the sheriff's office, booked him, called Storybrooke Penn, and arranged to have him shipped off the streets and into permanent jail first thing in the morning.

Later that night, as Killian undressed for bed, Emma studied his torso; there was not a single scathing, scar or entry wound; it was as if the shooting hadn't even happened. They both lay stunned in bed tat night.

"She's much more than just a witch, I'll have you know…" He mumbled, caressing Emma's hair. "I felt myself dying, Emma, she bloody brought me back."

"I was there…" Emma swallowed, stunned and involuntarily holding his body closer to hers.

"She's not only smart and powerful, Swan. That child has the kindest heart… She's a gentle little soul, our daughter." He turned his face to her. "He deserved to have his face smashed in, but… she stopped you."

"That taught me." Emma sighed. "My two year old has a bigger sense of empathy than I. You know… back in the enchanted forest, before I was born, my mom and dad were kind of…. Pushed apart by circumstance." She shifted positions. "She took a forgetting potion so she'd stop loving him. He tried kissing her, but it didn't work to break the spell because she had no memory of him. So he had to work hard, to make her fall in love with him anew." Emma sighed and sat up, feeling Killian's hand stroke her back in circles. "When she one day was about to shoot Regina with a magic arrow, my father got in the way and took the hit. He… said that he'd rather die than to let her blacken her soul. Mom was so touched, she allowed him to kiss her and then she remembered him." She turned her face to Killian. "That's what she did today, Lilly… she stopped me from blackening my own soul."

"Then you'll agree that there's more o our ¡Lilly than just magic and cleverness…" Killian said coldly. "And you'll also agree that because of it she will be facing all sorts of horrid challenges in her life…"

Emma smiled and leaned back down, kissed his cheek and settled her face into his neck with a sigh. "In light of today's events, Killian, I am far less worried about Lilly than I am about us. She's going to be practically unbeatable…" She swallowed. "While the guy had the gun to her face, I was going apeshit, but her? Huh!" she chuckled. "She was cool as a cucumber. It wasn't until she saw you on the floor and that she saw me kick the guy that she began to lose it herself. Killian…" She placed her arm around his chest. "I still can't control it. She was so calm, I was the one freaking out, I was the one making the lights explode, the hydrant blowing? That was me. I… still haven't gotten a full grip on this…. Magic thing."

"Oh you will, sweetheart." He whispered.

"Point is…" Emma licked he lips. "…if Lilly can handle this stuff with such cool, but she freaks out when something happens to us, or between us…. Then we are her weakness."

"I told you… challenges." He replied.

"This is Storybrooke; a villain is bound to emerge sooner or later, we both know that."

"Aye…"

"And whoever it is, will be using us to get to her… Like Zelena drowning you to take Lilly and get to me."

Killian thought for a minute. "Then we really do have to parlay with Zelena…"

"And set Elsa free."

"Aye…"

The next morning, Emma, Henry and Killian rose early; the pirate and Henry had been commissioned to sandwich duty and calling family and friends to invite them to Lilly's birthday beach picnic later that day, while Emma had to see to the perp's conviction, her statement (the good thing about Storybrooke was that she could use words like "magically cured by my daughter" in her official statement) and his safe transportation… and joined them all at the beach, bringing along Lilly's cake, clothes and a huge teddy bear for her daughter.

It was a perfect day.

And Emma sent a mental apology to Melissa back at the home; she remembered being slightly thrilled that she had been hurt and now… she felt ashamed of that; Because, in her daughter's eyes, she was way above that. And if she could forgive the perp for shooting her husband…

She was not going to ever disappoint her baby girl.


	25. Talk to the hand

**HELLO MY LOVELIES!**

**I JUST WANTED TO NOTIFY YOU ALL THAT I HAVE TO GO TO A 4 DAY CONGRESS, SO THERE WILL BE DELAYS IN THE DELIVERY OF THE NEXT ISNTALLMENT OF LILLY, LEST I WRITE SHORTER CHAPTERS AND UPLOAD THEM IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT; IF YOU SEE ME TAKING TIME, DON'T THINK I'VE DUMPED THE STORY, OK? I WILL BE REALLY, REALLY BUSY AS AN ORGANIZER OF THIS CONGRESS AND UNFORTUNATELY I HAVE TO BE THERE FULL TIME... BUT I WILL BE BACK HOME SUNDAY MORNING AND WITH ANY LUCK, BY MONDAY WE'LL BE BACK ON TRACK WITH THIS! LOVE YOU ALL, THANKS FOR THE AMAZING COMMENTS AND IDEAS! BIG HUGS!**

Mr. and Mrs. Gold sat on the porch swing of their home. It was a new little thing Rumple had added to their home as a gift to his young, beautiful wife. It never ceased to amaze him how in spite of his slip-ups (magic was probably ten times more addictive than gambling, for sure), she remained at his side, seeing what others didn't seem to or want to see.

He was actually just a scared but doting man with a big heart to give and little courage to do so, so Belle didn't expect him to give; rather she just barged in and took it. And she did so with unbelievable grace.

The day was warm and there was a nice, mellow breeze blowing from the ocean; it was easy to smell the salty dew in the air and temperature started to rise together with the humidity; it had to be said about Storybrooke…. There was never a nice, cool, fresh afternoon: It was always rain, snow or smoldering heat.

But not today.

"You're awfully pensive today Rumple…" Belle moaned softly, her head on his shoulder and pleasantly drowsy from the scent of the sea. "What's on your mind?"

"Oh, nothing of importance, dear."

"With you everything is of importance. At least to me."

He chuckled. "Been married a year and you already believe you can read my mind, Belle? Do you and the wee Jones girl share that particular trait?"

"Hmmm…" She smiled, lifted her head and kissed his cheek before leaning her head on his shoulder again. "Do the years I lived with you before not count? Or the years before that, before you had Regina enact the curse?"

"Ah, well, you forget I thought you were dead."

"Oh Mr. Gold, will you just…?"

He laughed softly. "Yes, love, you do seem to know me far too well for my own good. He kissed the top of her head. "Yes, I do have something twirling in my head."

"And what might that be?"

He sighed. "The pirate's daughter."

Belle sat up and frowned. "Lilly?"

He nodded. "Did you hear about what happened last month? She very well healed him from an actual gunshot, and a fairly lethal hit at that. He would have been dead in minutes. And… not a trace of the bullet. Now, I have my own healing skills, love, but a child her age?" He swallowed.

Belle's eyebrows went way up. "Who shot the captain?"

"That's not the point."

"But it is! Is he well?"

"YES! And the fact that he is well IS the point. By all natural laws, he should have died. I can heal people, but not at that speed and not when the impact would have shattered at least three major organs, Belle."

Belle liked her lips. "I'm surprised Emma and Hook haven't come looking for more answers."

He looked at her. "The last time they did they were out of sorts with each other and the infant once again totaled the shop in her distress."

Belle pulled her legs up beneath her. "Maybe I can find something about the history of special little wizards and witches in the library; why they come to be, what they need…"

"I can understand her skills, from Emma's side. But the pirate?" He huffed despondently. "Mutton headed drunk with one hand."

"Rumple…" Belle looked at him with a reprimanding gaze. "He did offer a truce, don't be wicked."

He side-grinned. "Perhaps you have a point… But he still calls me crocodile."

"Not that I actually condone your past actions, Rumple…" She tucked a strand of his long, ashen hair behind his ear. "But come to think of it… you sort of owe him. After all, if events hadn't transpired the way they did, you and I would not be together now. And besides, he did take care of Bae for a long, long time. From where I see it, he could have used him to hurt you, but he rather doted on him and taught him many valuable lessons, so…" She shrugged. "Even you must admit he's not all too bad these days."

He frowned a smiley frown. "Since when did YOU become such a fan of his?"

She smiled back. "Well, actually… He's not my problem. You are. And because of that…" she stood up and placed a kiss on top of her husband's head. "I'm going to look into the girl's case to help you out, because I can see that you still have a little bit of an itchy spot when it comes to Killian Jones."

He smiled. "He is one thing…his child is quite another." He looked down. "You have no idea how bad I felt when Zelena had me curse that little girl with a sleeping potion."

"I do have an idea. You're a good man, Rumple… you're the only one who really doesn't believe it so." She flattened her dress with both hands as she straightened out completely. "Now, I'll go do some research and you can be lovely and make me one of those wonderful roast beef sandwiches only you can…"

POOF.

He was suddenly holding a plate with the sandwich on it in his hand, as he grinned at her from the swing. "Voilà, Mrs. Gold."

Belle grinned back as she took the plate from him. "That's cheating."

He laughed again as she turned around and walked into their home. He breathed deep, enjoying the salted scent in the air.

He looked back in time, to the very first time he laid eyes on the pirate.

He had been naïve, that much was true… and back then, Killian Jones was indeed a bona fide ass: Young, reckless, self-centered and a successful pirate, even if that sounded absurd. He, on the other hand, was a humble weaver who lived in a meager hut and had married a woman far too ambitious for his own desires… which could be resumed to simply being left alone in his little village, with his little family.

He was far too scared to even want for anything else; that's what happens when you're betrayed and abandoned by your own father.

Looking out at the landscape, he remembered Hook's arrogant smirk as he pleaded with him to release Milah back; how hook handed him a sword and challenged him to fight for her, and how when he didn't, the sneering young man simply abandoned him to return home… which he did.

It struck him as odd to suddenly find himself reasoning that he hadn't 'stolen' his wife… but it had been her that had left him. It was only easier to blame the pirate, after all, that's all pirates do, isn't it? Steal and rob.

He sighed deep, suddenly wondering what would have happened, had he let her live, or had she not met Hook.

Belle was right.

He stood up and stepped into the house, finding his wife with her nose already stuffed into a thick, leather-clad book, her hand holding on to the sandwich that was fast becoming undone from beneath. She looked like some adorable student as she raised her face and grinned as she chewed before looking back into the book.

"Belle, you have stirred thought in me."

"Not that I ever need to…"

"True, but this time…" He reached for the coat hanger and grabbed a light coat. "I'll actually do something about it. I'll go have a word with the pirate."

Belle stopped chewing and shot her big, blue eyes at him. "And can I rely on the notion that you will be in your best behavior?"

He smiled broadly. "If he tries anything I'll turn him into a tadpole, but it's unlikely he will." He walked to her and leaned it to kiss her gently on the lips. "I am just joking. I'll be civil, I promise." He paced to the door and placed his keys in his pocket. "Should you find anything, I am taking my mobile…"

"Love you!" She quipped from the desk as he blew a kiss back and closed the door behind him.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

No man on any realm had ever been this sick; the loss of his hand brought on an onslaught of infections and fevers that he feared would take the young captain's life.

At one point, during an especially bad episode where they had to cut off an additional inch of his wrist due to necrosis, the captain had actually passed out in pain before thy had completed the cut. The medic knew that if he didn't remove that segment, he'd have poisoned blood within hours, so both the removal of the extra tissue as well as the subsequent scarring with the red-heated tip of his own sword to cauterize the nasty wound were an imperative yet painful measure.

Healing was another matter: Killian Jones had fever for days on end and would frequently waken from bad, sweaty nights in a haze of emotional distress, reliving that very last minute when she had simply gasped her final breath in his arms… her heart but a fistful of dust in the hands of her angered and powerful ex husband.

How he had loved her…

After a two-day sleep, he rose slowly. For a brief moment, he thought it had all been a bad dream, including his ten year affair with the brunette wife of The Dark One, but the still aching pulsations on his wrist welcomed him back into the reality that was his life: He was Killian Jones, the pirate captain of the Jolly Roger, who had just seen yet another loved one die.

Peter Bloom, a pirate they all called Screamer, the current chief gunner of the Jolly Roger, was mute; he had lost his tongue after being caught by the Arendellian armada for espionage. Captain Jones and his crew had saved him and six others from being shipped to hangman's island to carry out their death sentences; they were free men on the Jolly roger, and although he was young and terribly stern, the skipper was a fair man who lived by the book of good form: No pirate on the Jolly Roger would go for more than two days without bathing. The ship had to be kept clean and vermin free and there had to be equal amounts of apples and rum at all times… and some had even seen him being rather childlike with the three cats that always dwelled on the ship for the purpose of catching mice.

He was there when Killian woke screaming her name. He was the one who, washed, salt-cleaned and dressed wounds on the captain's wrist every day. He drew his baths and scrubbed his back, and it was he who made his new prosthetic, carving it out of wood, furnishing it in leather and adding a steel mechanism for the hook.

When Smee provided hook with a much needed bean to get the hell out of dodge once more and head to Neverland, Hook had but one thing in mind: Revenge. No man in the world had ever been so angry, so lost… so hurt.

In Neverland, it was the Lost Boys who christened Killian Jones as Captain Hook. At first he was determined to find whoever had invented the dreadful moniker, but as years went by he adopted it. He was after all, one handed, and had a hook for a limb. And it was also in Neverland where he acquired most of his swashbuckling skill. He became faster even than the Lost Boys themselves, and that was saying a lot.

Peter Pan was an absolute devil; Killian Jones was a pirate, a thief and a smuggler, but until that moment, never a murderous fiend. It was Pan that made one out of him. The lost boys he commandeered had a "second in command", a pointy haired, black cloaked youngster named Ruffio. Hook knew that even pirates have a code of honor, whereas this particular imp did not. The straw that broke the camel's back in Killian's heart was when the lost boys had taken Screamer captive while he was on shore, collecting water for the crew of the Jolly Roger, together with Mr. Smee.

Both were unarmed.

"A message form Pan." Ruffio had smiled at the two hogtied pirates. "These… are HIS river beds, pirates. It is punishable by death to drink from these springs without Pan's explicit say so. So you, fat boy, will deliver this message to your young captain…" He stepped within an inch of Smee's face. "Tell him… Peter Pan will make no exceptions based on rank…" He paced back and before Smee's very eyes, gutted Screamer, leaving him to die, disemboweled, under the Neverland sun. Pan's shadow made sure Smee returned to the Jolly Roger safely, albeit deeply traumatized, to convey the grizzly memo.

Now Hook may have been rigorous, but he was a fair and just captain to his crew; when he saw the state Smee was in, he personally questioned him in his quarters, allowing Smee to lie in his very own bed. But when he learned about what had happened to Screamer, his heart ached very, very deeply. It had been Bloom who had nursed the captain back to his health, who had seen to his well being… He had a debt of gratitude to the young gunner.

His anger grew.

When he finally captured Ruffio, his wrath was finally unleashed. He captured the third in command; a tall and lanky youth named Felix, and like Smee before him, made the young man watch.

"Tell you employer, Peter Pan… that Captain Hook, takes what he pleases… when he pleases… and from whomever he pleases. Tell him… that while he may possess magic, I posses wit and cunning smarts. Tell him that he is not to trifle with me or my crew any further, lest all his little gang of lost boys suffer Ruffio's grim, grim fate."

"And… what might that fate be, Captain?"

"Well…" Hook shrugged with a smirk. "Look here…"

He pulled a rope and from the top of a sail, the body of Ruffio suddenly hung down… skinless.

Blood dripped from the young man on the deck… and he was still shuddering… alive.

Hook stood coldly beside the agonizing young man, staring at Felix with a smirk. On his part, Felix gasped, unable to even scream at the sight of his agonizing friend.

"Have you any doubts… m'boy?"

Felix tightened his jaw. "He… will make you… pay… Hook."

"He will try." He smirked before turning back and suddenly stabbing what was left of Ruffio on the neck, pulling the hook to snap the bone and finish the young man's suffering swiftly. "Toss him overboard…" he looked at Felix with angry eyes. "Let the sharks enjoy a feast that doesn't have a fish's tail, for once." As the corpse of the now extinct young man splashed into the water, Captain Hook stepped within inches of Felix's face. "I already gave you my pupil… he was practically my son. You have already slain numerous members of my crew both on your shores and in your blasted echo cave… and I have remained idle, until now. So… " He licked his lips. "You tell Pan… he'd better offer me passage out of this accursed land of his if he wants me out of his hair. I've kept my end of the bargain and want no further shenanigans from some nasty little boy who refuses to grow older." He held Felix's jaw with his one hand. "And that, my lad, is what I want you to tell your chief…" He gave him a gentle, mocking slap, and smiled as he paced back. "Put him back in his boat, lads… Shove him back to his turf. I'm done with these… lost devils."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Three taps.

Emma knew exactly who always knocked with three taps.

She huffed and stood from her couch (a much-craved spot whenever Lilly took a nap) and stood to the door.

"Hello, Mr. Gold." She smiled as she opened.

Rumplestiltskin smiled. "My, my dearie, aren't we perceptive…"

"No. Just a good listener." She put her hands in her back pockets. "How can I help you?"

"Well, first off, you might want to ask me in, just pout of politeness…"

Emma shook her head and looked down. "Sure. Come in."

She stood aside and opened the door, allowing Mr. Gold to step in. The man looked around him; the place had almost been completely furnished in (of course) a very nautical motif: Lots of wood and blues and reds… a massive helm wheel stood as a chandelier, which was, had to be said, quite the touch.

"My… the pirate does have quite the domestic touch, I must say."

"The pirate has a name…" Emma sighed as she sat down in the living room.

"Of course. Like mine is Crocodile, I suppose…"

Emma sighed in defeat. "What do you want, Mr. Gold?"

"Actually, I must parlay with your husband."

Emma furrowed her brow. "He's… working, won't be back for another hour."

Gold nodded. "Yes, well… tell him I have something for him. Something I should have given him a long time ago, and that he should come to my shop to collect it as soon as possible."

Emma raised an eyebrow. "Should he… be afraid?"

"Quite the contrary, Miss Swan…" he smiled. "It's, so to speak, my pipe of peace. Since he was the one to shake my hand in that barn when he could have killed me. I wouldn't have stopped him, after what I was forced to do to your little one…"

"What… is this about?" Emma grinned humorlessly.

"I have thought, Miss Swan, without relent, about your daughter." He nodded. "You came here to bring back the happy endings. And I believe I have a theory of the role your daughter is playing in this whole story. Belle's researching on it right now, and I would very much like to speak to the two of you… and her, as soon as I have confirmation of this." He leaned forward. "She is special, Emma. Too special. And it is important that she find herself in a peaceful place, surrounded by love, all the time. There should be no hate, no feuding in the hearts of anyone who is to be around her. Hence… I want a full truce with the pir…. With Captain Jones."

Emma sighed and nodded. "Ok. I'll let him know you were by as soon as he gets home."

"Very well. Tell him he can come over at any moment. I will remain in the shop all day for that purpose alone." He stood up and headed for the door, and as he opened and stepped outside, he turned to look at Emma. "Your little girl has a purpose, Emma. Make no mistake about that."

He walked away with a grin, feeling light spirited.

Two hours later, the bell in his shop rang and in stepped a weary but mellow captain Hook.

"So… you did come. And here I had thought you'd reject my invitation, Captain."

"Not being best mates doesn't mean we can't be civil enough." He shoved his hands into his thick jacket. "What is it you need… Rumplestilskin?"

Gold smiled, acknowledging the fact that Emma had probably warned Killian against calling him Crocodile. "There's something I've kept for a long time… something that belongs to you."

"Aye? And what may that be?"

The imp grinned and went under his cabinet to produce a leather box, which he presented to the Captain. "This… might be a bit of a shock." He sighed as he slid the box to Hook.

"And… if I open this, will there be some sort of venomous vermin ready to jump to my carotid? "

"The only vermin was the one I took this from. I really am starting to believe that vermin no longer exists as such. Or at least it has no poison left." And he offered a mild grin.

Hook sighed deep and turned the box to face him. He hesitantly opened it and as he did, his eyes widened.

He took two steps back. "Y… you are a devil!"

"Wait…" Rumple held his hand out. "I'm offering this as a truce. This… is your hand."

Killian swallowed deep. "Of course it's my bloody hand! Quite literally, bloody! You kept it? As a bloody trophy?"

"Indeed." He nodded. "But now I've no longer a thrill in having it. It does not belong to me."

Killian sneered. "And what damn use is it to me, when it's been detached from my general anatomy?" He looked at it and was stunned to see it looked just as fresh and lively as his healthy hand. "Bloody hell, you are a devious one…"

"Captain…" Rumple leaned on his counter. "I intend to offer you to reattach your hand, should you desire it so."

Killian froze. "R… reattach it?"

The crocodile nodded. "It's the least I can do after what I put your child through. Not… that I could have had a chance to not do it, but…" he looked into the pirate's eyes. "I believe we're both way past the whole… nasty… "_She left you-you stole her_" business. Three hundred years is enough. Milah's long gone, you have a good life and a lovely family now and I am certainly quite happier myself as well, so…"

Killian frowned, his eyes going from his hand to Rumple's eyes. "What's the catch?"

"Not a catch, dearie. Just… a chance." He nodded. "Your daughter is spectacular. Please, allow me to observe her development; I am quite certain she is much more than just an infant wizard. I heard that she saved you from certain death, did she not?" He walked around the counter. "Believe me…. Captain Jones: The last thing you'd ever want, is for that wee one to fall into the wrong hands; and if my suspicions are correct, there will be PLENTY of hands who will be interested, and believe me, my hands are NOT the ones you are to be worried about." He faced Killian Jones sternly. "That little girl needs all the protection she can get. Please, allow me to guard her, to help her. It is in ALL our best interest."

Killian sighed and swallowed. "I should… probably discuss this with Emma."

"Please do. And once you have, we will have your hand working again. But please, take notice: Your hand was the part of the body of a very, very different man. We all change, Captain. You will have to learn to overcome and control whatever roguish remains of that man are still attached to this limb. Not to mention, that there is no chance to separate it from your body again through means of magic; you'd have to have it severed once more." He grinned. "Knowing your stubborn character, it really should be no trouble."

Killian eyed the hand suspiciously. "Is it an option not to have it reattached?"

"It certainly is; however, I am sure there is plenty more you could do with it: Just think: You can tie your daughter's shoelaces, play with her, hold her with both hands and toss her in the air without fear of hurting her with your hook…" He smirked. "You should be able to control the impish thoughts. And once you do, you will not only have regained your full dexterity, but you will have vanquished the darkness in your heart. After all…" He sighed. "Darkness is an imprint. I am sure you want to be the best man you can be, for your wee one." He grinned. "It's a free offer, Captain, no agenda behind it. Think it through."

He turned back to his cabinet, closed the box containing the hand and placed it back under the counter.

Killian took the long way to walk back home.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"No strings attached, he said." He spoke to Emma once Lilly and Henry were asleep. "When he was here, love, did you… get a chance to look into his eyes? You know, with your… superpower… thingamabob?"

"Yep." Emma huffed as she leaned back on the couch. "He seemed on the level, or at least as far as I could tell; this is The Dark One we're talking about. Although he did say Belle was also working on it with him." She looked into his eyes and grinned. "I can't even imagine you with two hands…"

He grinned back. "Do you think I should do this, love?"

She shrugged. "I don't know, I don't care, really. Well, I do care, but the choice is yours." She put her feet up on his lap. "I'll love you either way."

"What if… I start acting lewd to you, love, or… doing things that I'd no longer do in my right mind?"

She sighed. "Well, like Gold said, you probably have all that it takes to beat the crap out of the lewd pirate. And besides, I believe it was that same dread pirate that kind of fell in love with me to begin with, Mr. "_giants-can-smell-blood_" superb bullshitter man."

Killian giggled. "That was not bullshit, love."

"I think I can handle the lewd pirate Hook…"

Hook sighed deep and looked at his hook before looking at her. She smiled and shook her head. "Entirely up to you…"

Later that night, Hook was standing at the door of the Pawn Shop, looking through the glass and sign that read "CLOSED". A puff of smoke startled him. "So, you made up your mind?"

Killian swallowed. "This will not… change the way I feel about Emma, will it? Make me forget?"

"Your memories shall be intact, I can assure you that. All of them."

Hook sighed and looked at his prosthetic limb. He closed his eyes and pressed his lips together before turning to Rumple with a nod. "Very well. Let's do this."

Rumple nodded with a grin. "You're indeed brave. And your daughter will value that, greatly. Let's get this done. Please, remove the brace, Captain."

Killian took his jacket off as rumple allowed himself into the store. Hook followed and then rolled up his sleeve, unbuckling the leather straps.

Rumple looked at the wound as Hook held his stare with a glare. He sighed and actually looked into Hook's eyes. "I am… sorry… Killian."

The pirate licked his lip and drew a deep breath with a nod. "Aye. As am I."

No further expression left the lips of either one as rumple produced the magically conserved limb and with a small flick of the hand, Killian Jones once again had his hand, after three hundred years.

He swallowed as he looked at it, a strange feeling overcoming that limb of… well, of having a limb.

"Well? Go ahead, dearie, give it a wiggle."

He gulped loudly and slowly curled his fingers. He felt them curl, and his lips also curled upwards at an equal pace.

"There. As good as new, now… remember, this hand has memories. Be sure to be the bigger man. Good night, captain Jones."

Hook walked home, gawking at his hand with a smile, trying to see if there was any difference in the way he felt: there was no difference, none at all. He was still blissfully happy, whole and content.

As he opened the door to the apartment, Emma held Lilly in her arms and henry stood from the couch, expectantly.

He entered, holding his hand behind his back, and when he saw his family's expectant faces, he smiled and showed them. "Look who's got two hands!" He laughed.

"Awesome! Henry quipped. "Can I still call you Hook, though?"

"No, you get to keep calling me dad which I've grown rather fond of." He responded before winking at the boy. "If you feel like it of course…"

Henry smiled fully and was the first to run to hug him. Killian managed to feel Henry's jacket on his open left hand as the boy grabbed a hold of him. "My father would be proud of you." He said as he grinned.

To say Killian was touched was an understatement. He simply placed an affectionate kiss on the boy's head. "Thank you… Henry."

Emma approached him with their daughter in her arms and both stared at it awkwardly. Emma reached up and entwined her fingers around his. "How does that feel, captain?"

"Like it'd never left…" He smiled and leaned in for a kiss before turning to his little girl. "And what say you, Lilly?"

The little girl grinned and kissed his hand before turning her arms around for he father to hold her… And how wonderful it was to be able to feel her with both hands!

And late that night, Emma witnessed how a two-handed Killian Jones made love… and it was just as good.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"No… no!" He rose in the middle of the night, his mind still reeling from the reminiscence of his past. He panted and ran his hand down his face as he tried to catch his breath. He turned, sweating, to look at Emma; luckily she hadn't even stirred. He took in the sight of her, a sight of peace, light and love… a much needed light, after the darkness of his past.

He slid his legs out of the bed and sat on the edge, holding his head with a huffed 2Bloody hell…" escaping his lips, before standing up to grab a glass of water…. Or rum, should there be some.

He sat in the kitchen for an hour, just pondering about what he had dreamed… He rather saw it all as if it had played before his eyes, resembling some sort of theater play, and not his own life and actions.

Rufio's deeds had been dastardly, gutting Screamer the way he had…. But his had been even worse. The image of the skinned boy hanging from his mast, unable to even scream from the insurmountable pain was terribly haunting and it ached deep. He had changed indeed, and the real Killian Jones, the young man who in spite of having a mild rebellious streak and a happy-go-lucky, sassy attitude to life, was a stern believer in good form.

That had been ANYTHING but. And three hundred years did not make the memories any less horrid. He looked at his hand, and came to realize that by the time he'd done that horrible deed, he had already lost it. He realized then that this was going to be like standing in front of the ghastliest mirror, one that would show him all his past erring relentlessly, to make him face it and come to grips with the man he was and then and the man he was now.

Facing oneself was probably worse than living one-handed for the rest of his life; but probably worth the fight.

A mild whimpering pulled him from his guilt trip and he turned his head towards Lilly's room. He stood up and walked to her door, opening it slightly.

She too, seemed to be having a nightmare.

He gently sat by the side of her bed, and quietly stirred her out of her bad dream and back into pleasant sleep. "Angel? Shhh…" He caressed the sweaty little head of raven black hair back to a blissful peace. "There, little darling…" He grinned.

She opened her little eyes groggily. "Sing… peez." She whispered.

He smiled. "As the lady wishes…" He sighed. "I used to sing this to you when you were a wee, wee babe…"

He cleared his throat and softly sang to her.

"_A fair maid I met in the shorelines of yore,_

_who was my beloved when we reached ashore…"_

He was suddenly stunned to find little Lilly was humming the tune… note for note.

_She bloody remembers_, he thought, and stunned but smiling, he continued singing.

"_So sailor, sail swiftly and turn back the sail,_

_I'm missing my lady behind her white veil…"_

"White veil…" He repeated to himself with a mild smirk.

"Daddy?" She looked up sleepily.

"Hmm? Yes, my love?" He turned with a smile.

She touched his new (not new, but new) hand and looked into his eyes. "Hand. Bad dreams."

He huffed; why wasn't he surprised she had put two and two together?

"Aye, dear, I know; this hand has a lot of memories..." He leaned down and kissed her forehead. "But whatever may come from it, I promise you… I will never, ever cease to love you and I will never stop being the man I am. You believe me?"

"Aye." She grinned confidently.

He touched her cheek and grinned. "Love you, angel. Sleep well now. See you at dawn."

She grinned, babbled something completely incoherent and turned to sleep again, humming his song to herself.

Killian stepped out of her room and turned back to look at her from the doorframe. "I can do this…" He whispered to himself. He then went back into his to find Emma was awake.

Their eyes met and he huffed. "I'm sorry Swan, did I wake you?"

"It's your hand, isn't t?" She spoke softly but firmly, looking into his eyes.

Their "no-bullshit" policy had probably been the first thing he and Emma had ever fully connected with, and he was not ready to let this challenge overcome him.

"Aye. I think I know now what Rumplestiltskin meant." He sat on the edge of the bed and sighed. "Villainy is a comfortable state, Emma, it allows you to get away with vilifying anything without a single cause for regret. But then one day, you turn the helm of your shit…" He grinned and she did too, both understanding his reference. "… and you stir into the direction of light. Suddenly you find yourself trying to keep all these… secrets, these experiences and horrible deeds you did in a box, under key, and hope and pray they never, ever come out." He shrugged. "It's rather daft, thinking they will just disappear…. But…"

"…but they won't until you set them free."

"Precisely." Emma saw his face contort into a horrible wince. "Oh Gods, Swan I did some horrible things… Truly horrid."

Emma crawled on the bed and kissed his cheek. "Tell me."

He looked at her pleadingly. "You'll hate me."

"I'd probably have hated THAT other guy, but NEVER the guy you are now. Go on… let it out."

Killian told Emma the story of Ruffio, and how that wasn't even the worst thing he'd ever done. "This will be a rough sea to navigate. I can't believe I did so many…"

Emma was indeed a little bit shocked by the gruesomeness of the story, but also felt akin to his plight. Out of nowhere, she just blurted out that at some point, during one of the many times she ran from her foster homes, she killed a cat. "It wasn't calculated, I was just… sleeping in an alley and I was sad and cold and hungry… and this cat was mewing and meowing and I just lost it. I wanted to make it stop, so I just threw the first thing I grabbed and… hit the mark." She sniffed. "Never felt worse in my entire life."

"Much as I like moggies, Emma, Ruffio was a child."

"A life is a life. They say that those that start by killing animals will eventually progress to people." She caressed his hair. "I know that that person is not there anymore. I can see it right now, look at you." She reached out and grabbed his left hand. "We'll get this hand under control. I 'm not going anywhere soon."

Hook sighed. "You… really don't think I'm sort of… monster?"

"I think you might have been… once. But I also think that you're not that monster any more. You're certainly not perfect, I'm not perfect either… and we still have a long way to go. This is Storybrooke…" She chuckled. "Look at Regina: Henry adores her. She's certainly not the woman we saw in the past, not by a long shot. If you have red numbers in your tally, she's got a whole red sheet, but…" She shrugged. "She has a good heart underneath it all."

He sighed. "This won't be easy."

She smiled. "It never is. All the more reason to enjoy the quiet moments, and now…" She turned his face to her and touched his lips with hers. "We have a quiet moment."

He smiled. "Yeah, we do." He stood up and walked to the door. "But right now I've got to do something…" He left the room and Emma heard him put on his full length leather trench coat and leave out the front door. She knew exactly where he was going: To think by the docks.

She didn't stop him.

Instead, she stood up and meant to look at the kids; she was stopped cold by Lilly standing right in the middle of the hall. "What are you doing up at this time, pumpkin?" She walked to her daughter.

"Daddy sad." She mumbled.

Emma pressed her lips together; if Killian had always been insightful, Lilly could read minds and that pretty much meant they were all quite naked, mentally, before their two year old daughter.

"He had a bad dream." Emma caressed her hair.

"Ruffio." She said.

Emma furrowed her brow. "Lilly… you know about his dream?"

Lilly nodded. "Sad."

"Honey you have to understand, he is not that man any more, he is good, you know that, right?"

She nodded with a grin. "Aye."

Emma hugged her and took her back to her bed… and hoped and prayed Lilly wouldn't start sharing her father's ordeal… although it certainly looked like that was the way it was going.


	26. She Comes

A flurry of fluffed, freshly fallen snow blew through the iced regions of the sea faring Arendellian province of Sullenshore. The realm's most notorious boys' academy sat in the heart of it, the Sullenshore Academy of Sea Navigation. No magic and no other unnatural hocus pocus was allowed in the school; all who entered dreamed of becoming Commodores, Captains and Naval Officers, to travel the worlds and all seven seas, perhaps even crossing realms, on board one of the kingdom's famed vessels, those made of enchanted wood, that served the Royal navy.

One such pupil made it and had earned a name and reputation for being the academy's finest mathematical stargazer and reader, mapmaker, navigator, sailor and captain… and who had quite unfortunately, given in to piracy. Captain Killian Jones, know to have stolen the finest vessel in the fleet, one that had been manned by his older brother, Liam Jones, and that now sailed the seas under the crimson flag and the name of Jolly Roger.

Those who remembered Killian Jones were befuddled by his mutiny; sure, he had always been slightly against the mainstream and he and his brother had been the most rebellious and unruly boys to ever set foot in the school, but the younger Jones had displayed unbelievably advanced navigating skills, his calculus and arithmetic practically flawless and with an uncanny ability to manipulate sextants, compasses and astrolabes. And even without those, he seemed to be naturally aware of his orientation. He'd made many friends, many of whom had earned other important positions, married off to good women and had started families of their own, he was reputed for his strict code of conduct (unlike his days at school) and was the village heartbreaker: few if any young women were new to the handsome looks and fresh face of Killian Jones, and in spite of his taste for the ladies, he still hoped in his heart he'd someday find that good, kind angel he'd set out to find.

But at only twenty-two, Lieutenant Jones became Captain of his very own pirate ship, his heart devastated by the tragic death of his brother.

His first deed as a pirate was to loot the envoy vessel of the Southern Isles, as a belated dowry for having wed the former Queen's sister, Princess Anna. The tip, it seemed, came from the former boyfriend of the girl, an ice-bearer named Kristoff, who seemed to believe his young lover had been forcefully engaged to the now craven King Hans, the man who had sent Killian's beloved brother into an early grave.

Killian was only delighted to oblige: He and his crew attacked at night and not only looted the ship in its entirety, but also recruited half of its men to serve him as crew members in the Jolly.

Nevertheless, no men were killed; Killian Jones had a strict no-killing policy that made him stand out as the pirate who apparently, lived by a code.

Regardless of his mercy, King Hans was furious; it had been he who had offered the Jones brothers a once in a lifetime shot at notoriety, and this was his repayment?

After Killian looted yet another vessel (and also stole the King's mistress, a courtier named Clarissa, taking her to Misthaven in exchange for her loving care during the journey), King Hans had had enough; he set a price on Killian's head, for no less than seven thousand gold doubloons, dead or alive.

Being a marked man is not an easy thing to live with, being a pirate: For such a price, his own crewmembers would have easily turned him in. So he took leave and continued his pirating schemes in Misthaven, known to its local inhabitants as the Enchanted Forest, the source for the wood of his ship.

Within a few years, he'd made a reputation for himself; it was easy for him to fall into the pirating world and lifestyle. While onboard, he was as strict as any well-bred naval officer might be; but once off shore, he was generous with his wages, paid his crew members equally and generously, and often joined them all in pubs and inns to celebrate the loot of the day. He was well-known for his gaming skills (dice were his area of expertise) and there was not a day he'd go back to his quarters without at least one decent looking woman escorting him and favoring him during the night.

Sometimes he'd please more than one in a single night, as well.

But all that ceased one night, one fateful night, when a remarkably beautiful brunette served him his first ale of the night. She looked a little different from all the other wenches present that evening: the girl had a visible stance of dignity and it was easy to tell she was neither a true bar wench nor a whore, but a woman working to sustain a home, maybe even a child. The second thing that caught his eye was her kind smile… and finally, her eyes, as they met his. The girl froze in place as she placed the beer before him, and both pirate and bar girl exchanged a grin.

"Thank you love."

"Most welcome, Captain." She grinned shyly as she leaned her hands on her apron.

"You have a name?" He raised a brow.

She smiled again. "Silly question. Don't we all?"

The pirate stood up and bowed before her. "Killian Jones, milady."

"I know of you, Captain Jones… You've quite the reputation."

"Have I now?"

"Aye: A gamer, a cad and a ladies man, a charmer who is known to be the handsomest man in all the seas but treacherous and dangerous, a thief and coward. Now if you'll excuse me…"

He stopped her by the arm as she tried to pass by him. "You did not say 'man of honor'"

She chuckled. "Can a pirate ever be one?"

Killian turned to her with a full smile displayed. "You'd be surprised; I've much more honor in a single toenail than the king of the realm that saw my birth."

She side-grinned. "Milah. Milah's my name."

Killian nodded. "I am honored, Milah. Now, I would be even more honored if you'd… join me at our table. I've got an unusual appetite for a game of dice."

Mila side grinned. "I happen to be damn good at dice."

"You'd never beat me, love…" He grinned, flashing his dice from his pocket.

Milah picked them up and after looking at them carefully, she swiftly tossed them into the fire.

"OII!" Killian hollered.

Milah took two steps towards his face. "Those were loaded. Now…." She produced her own dice. "Want to know how real dice are played, Captain Jones?"

Normally, Killian Jones hated being nested; except when it was by a woman. Then the effect was quite the opposite: He immediately felt attracted to any woman who could outwit him.

And, as he had suspected, Milah beat him, three games in a row. She was looking more and more beautiful to him by the second.

Killian and his crew returned to that inn three nights in a row; by the third, he and Milah had become inseparable.

But after the night of the fourth day, the sun threatened to sweep the pirate and his crew away, to return gods knew when. Milah found the young captain as she woke in his arms, and begged him, pleaded with him, to take her with him.

"And you boy?" He whispered into her hair. "What will become of the lad, without his mother?"

"I cannot be a good mother to him if I lose my mind, and I shall, if I remain here…" She spoke back, her lips pressed to the rugged roughness of his cheek. "Please… Killian… take me with you. I am chained to a life of servitude as the wife of a weaver who can't even find it in him to defend his own shadow."

"Why don't you return home and fetch the boy, love?" he caressed her hair. "You know I'd be like father to him. You've naught to fear from me."

"It's not you I fear. But Rumple. He will find a way to make me feel guilty and I will never leave. He always does. Trust me, he might look meek, but there is a certain… darkness in him, a darkness that frightens me." She pressed her hands to his chest. "We can return in a few years and take Baelfire when his father is not home… when the boy is a little bit older and Rumple has given me up for dead. Please… Killian, I beg of you, my love…"

My love…

No words could melt his heart more than those.

"Then with me you shall come." He grinned and kissed her forehead.

Later that day, the small, slouching figure of a man in a cloak came to is ship, and asked for the return of his wife.

"I've many a man's wife here, mate." He replied with a grin. "And I'm not much for badgery. But that being said, I do consider myself an honorable man, a man with a code, so… If you truly want your wife back… then claim her. Rescue her and her honor…" A crew member threw a sword at Rumple's feet.

From behind the wooden panel of the top deck, Milah looked in secret; a part of her wished for Rumple to grab that sword and furiously fight for her, to show her how wrong she was about his cowardice… But he did nothing.

Killian held the sword to his throat. "Pick it up…" After obtaining no reply, he stepped to the man's face. "A man not willing to fight for what he wants, deserves what he gets. And you? You deserve to have such a luscious and beautiful woman taken from you. She's far too good for a coward."

"No… p… please sir… please…" the tiny man squeaked through tears. "What shall I tell my boy?"

"You could try the truth." Killian smiled coldly. "That his mother was taken by pirates and that his father was far too scared to fight for her when he had the chance… that he let them take her…" he sneered at him. "That he's too much of a coward." He turned and paced towards the hatch that led to his quarters. "Now leave my ship or walk the plank, either one is fine, see if I care."

He and Milah enjoyed one another for eight years. She once was with child but lost it just before the first trimester. They both tried again… and once she learned she was once again pregnant, they planned to return to mainland, to collect Bae and be the family they had wanted to become.

No one had counted on meek, scaredy-cat Rumplestiltskin to acquire the power of the Dark One. Even the bold and sassy Killian Jones knew well enough to stay away from that particular entity.

And then, his life fell apart… Rumple claimed his honor back by taking the life of Milah and their unborn child with him, together with Killian's hand, sparing his life to guarantee the aches and pains of his suffering.

His pride, his arrogance and his self-centeredness had cost him the life of the woman he loved… and their unborn son or daughter. He'd have to live with that guilt forever.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"MOMMY!"

Emma ran like a bat out of hell into Lilly's room at four in the morning, to find her daughter sitting upright in her crib, sobbing her little heart out, as she held her hands out to her mother.

"Oh sweetie… shhh…" She consoled the child. "It's ok…" She paced around the room, holding her, her hand tucked on her little head and caressing the black and long strands of hair. "It's all over now, just a bad dream…"

Lilly continued sobbing as Emma tried to calm her down, only to be taken aback by a sudden crashing sound. Lilly jumped and cried louder as Emma ran back to her bedroom, finding Killian sitting on the edge of the bed, hands tucked in his hair, trying to compose himself after another episode.

That damn hand was really taking a toll…

"Killian?"

When he turned and found Emma holding a now quietly sobbing Lilly Jones, his face fell. "Oh… not again. No…" He turned to them and tried to hold his daughter, but was stunned to see she refused.

That hurt deep; Lilly never refused to be held by her father, ever.

"Lilly, honey, your dad wants to hug you, why don't you…?"

"NO! DADDY IS BAD!" She screamed into her mother's hair.

Emma turned a wide-eyed look at Killian, who looked crushed, his face distorted into an ached sneer as he turned back to sit on his side of the bed.

"I'll just … put her back to bed…" Emma turned quietly and walked to Lilly's nursery. She asked if she wanted daddy to sing for her, and even that she declined.

What the hell had she and her husband dreamt of this night, anyway?

Once Lilly was asleep, she returned to the room; Killian was sitting on the chaise by the window, going through the little baby album he had seen back in New York, his eyes swollen and red, and his expression conveying an ached smile.

She grabbed a blanket and sat next to him, wrapping them both.

"So, you wanna tell me what the hell it was about this time?" She leaned on his shoulder.

Killian did not reply; he continued grinning at the images of the little baby girl he had come to worship.

"Killian?"

"I can't let her carry on like this." He whispered. "She doesn't deserve to endure my own blackened heartache, Swan. I have no idea what to do to control these… bloody memories." He swallowed and touched the image of a newborn Lilly. "I've just… relived the most painful moment of my life, and woke up to find my daughter hates me." He swallowed. "She shouldn't be burdened by my own mistakes, Swan."

She took the book from him and sighed as she closed it. "Look, we both knew it was going to be rough seas ahead and…"

"HAD I KNOWN MY DAUGHTER WOULD SUFFER I'D HAVE BLOODY NEVER LET THIS HAPPEN!" He jumped up and shouted, making Emma jump. He ran a hand through his hair, frustrated. "She's learning all my deepest and darkest secrets, Emma, things I've never even told you, and if reliving them hurts me, can you imagine what it does to an innocent wee girl? It's not fair!" He huffed. "I'll go to Whale tomorrow… see if he can get this bloody hand chopped back off."

"Hey HEY!" Emma stood up before him. "That is NOT yet an option. Look, we know Lilly is powerful, we must have to find a way to disconnect her from your own memories, I'm sure there's a way."

He sighed and finally sat down on the edge of the bed. "We've got to find Zelena. The bloody witch that almost killed our child, yes." He huffed and slumped back on the bed. "Why does this all have to be so bloody complicated?"

Emma shook her head. "I've no idea; but I don't think Gold will be too amicable and just hand in that urn." She sighed. "We have to do something."

"My child hates me."

"She does not."

"She thinks I'm bad, you hear her…"

"She was scared, Killian! You know she doesn't feel that way!"

"Hmmm." He sat up and looked into Emma's eyes. "Did you know that… when she died, Milah was pregnant with my child?"

Emma gasped. "Wh… what?"

"Aye…" he stood and paced. "We'd lost one already so, we were rather happy about this one. That was when we decided to return for Bae." He shrugged. "Neither of us had a clue that her cowardly husband had turned into the most powerful dark sorcerer in all the realms." He gulped. "The man didn't crush one heart. He crushed two." He turned his face to Emma. "And then took my hand to try and steal the bean that had lead him to us…." He gulped. "It seems the hand has not only memories, but it also triggers the darkest ones, ones that occurred even after I became Hook."

She ran her hand in circles on his back. "You're facing them, one by one. And they will be gone once you do." She caressed his hair. "You've always been there for me, Killian, no matter what. So… Time to return the favor."

He nodded. "Thank you love. I know I can handle these bloody memories. But Lilly should not."

Emma thought for a minute and nodded. "Yeah. You're right about that." She looked at him. "Why do you suppose she has these dreams as well?"

"I have a theory… might have been when she saved me… she might have connected to me, I don't know…" He shook his head. "Nevertheless, she's but a babe; the visions in my mind are far too strong to stomach, even for me, and I was the one who did these things. It's no wonder she hates me right now."

"It could be. Either way, we'll have to ask Gold about that urn." She kissed his cheek. "And she worships you, stop saying she hates you."

The door was suddenly pushed open softly; both Emma and Hook turned to find Lilly standing there.

"She climbed over the bars?" Killian turned to Emma.

"She's been doing that a lot recently…" Emma nodded back. "What's the matter, honey?"

Lilly looked at her father and walked to him. She touched his hand and looked into his eyes. "Daddy, this bad."

Killian looked at his hand. "You mean my hand, angel?"

"Aye."

He and Emma exchanged a glance, and Killian looked at his daughter again. "Tell me something, Lilly, love… is... the hand bad, or is your father bad? Please… "

Lilly looked at him in the eye and pointed at his heart. "This good…" then his head. "This good." And finally, his hand. "This bad."

Killian fisted his left hand and nodded. "Aye, little one, I am inclined to agree with you. Do you think…" he swallowed. "… do you believe we should get rid of it, darling?"

"Killian!" Emma cut in.

Lilly continued to stare at her father, before shaking her head with her happy, normal grin. "No. Clean."

"Clean it?"

"Aye."

He sighed and touched her hair. "How?"

The child rolled her eyes around and shrugged hard with a smile.

Killian raised an eyebrow. "You… don't know." He looked at Emma before looking back at her with a grin. "Well, you're not supposed o know everything now, are you?" he touched the tip of her nose. "You're a smart one, Lilly love."

The girl grinned and babbled something as she held her hands out for her pirate father to hold her. "Oh, then, does that mean you forgive me now?"

"Aye."

He smiled back and picked her up, pulling her to the bed. "Good, love, because I was really sad that you were mad at me."

"Daddy sad."

"Aye, I am. But I will be fine, I promise."

As she huddled between them, she sighed and whispered something, barely audible, before she nodded off to sleep. "She comes."

Emma and Hook exchanged a glace. Emma mouthed at Killian. "Who comes?"

"No idea…" He mouthed back as they both lay down, with worried scorns on their foreheads, to try and sleep.

The rest of the night was dreamless, as Lilly slept between her mother and father, waiting for the light of dawn.

As they and the rest of the town slept, a cold, ominous breeze was blowing through the streets of Storybrooke.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

A few hours earlier, Rumplestiltskin had been sitting alone in his shop; He fiddled with his cane, wondering whether or not returning the pirate's hand had been the right move. He knew the agony that would entail; but he also knew he would need both limbs to deal with the events that were soon to come.

He had a powerful theory behind Lilly's existence and power, and while it was a breath of hope, it also carried with it a series of terrible obstacles, far too powerful for an innocent little two-year-old child to face alone… even if she had been born for the very purpose of it.

The magic that dwelt in Storybrooke was barely enough. There were a few magical beings living there: Regina, Emma, Jefferson, BoBeep and himself…. And now the little girl.

He needed help for what was to come, if the little one was to make it out of it alive…

Zelena was definitely NOT an option. Even if given an opportunity, she was far too envious and succumbed with ease to her own desires, so returning her magic to her was out of the question. Henry was viable, being Emma's son and his own grandson, but he had not yet shown signs of magical prowess… so there was one more that could be of aid… the woman in the urn.

He sighed and shook his head as he cast a protector spell around the shop, before leaving for the barn where Zelena had opened her time portal. He then proceeded to release the contents…

Zelena was easily captured in a genie's lamp. It was the other prisoner he needed to have congress with.

A smooth, blue liquid oozed from the urn after Rumple opened it and gently placed it on the ground. It came together in the center of the circle carved by Zelena's portal, and slowly built itself up to reveal a woman, young, beautiful…. And powerful beyond measure.

She drew breath and gasped as she looked around. She found Rumplestiltskin's gaze and she stopped, a sudden flurry of soft snow falling on top of her head. "Wh… who are you?"

Gold grinned. "You have no memory of me… dearie?" He stepped to her. "You came to me, looking for your sister, and begging me to imprison you before you froze the whole realm."

The girl closed her eyes and exhaled softly. "Rumplestiltskin."

"Welcome back… Queen Elsa."

"Why have you set me free?"

Gold swallowed a hard gulp. "You are standing in a different realm, a realm that before me, had no magic. There are few magical beings here… and we need your help."

"H… how?"

"A child was born, Elsa… the one who can defeat Her."

Elsa paled even more and the wind picked up a notch. Gold shuddered.

"The one who… froze Arendelle, is that the one you speak of?"

"Indeed."

"She cannot be stopped." Elsa paced. "She helped Hans to power and set me up, you know this."

"If that is so…" he walked to her, unafraid. "Why did you ask me to restrain you?"

Elsa shook her head. "M… my sister. She threatened to kill Anna, I… I could not have stopped her." She looked up at Gold. "What became of her?"

Gold paced and shrugged. "She wed your foe, under blackmail, of course. Her fiancée recruited a pirate to try and start a revolt against the King, not that the pirate had needed any prompting. He already had his own quandaries with him. Nevertheless, it seems that he ruled over your land, dearie, before he perished of old age." He reached into his pocket and produced a small, snowflake medal. "This, I believe, was your sister's."

"Anna…" Elsa gasped, teary eyed, as she took the little medallion in her hand. "Does she still live?"

Rumple stared at her coldly. "She does."

Elsa swallowed and nodded. "What do I have to do?"

"Well for one… no one should leave this town. For their own safety… and the rest of this realm's." He bit his lower lip. "And then we find Her."

"And what of the Healer?"

"The Healer, dear, is an infant girl… she is the child of a Savior and a Captain of your realm, and also the product of true love. It wasn't until I learned about the origins of her father that I put two and two together. Her name… is Lilly Jones." He paced to her. "It is imperative that the child is safe… safe from Her. Or we will all be lost… including your sister."


	27. Cold Walls of Jericho

The morning was especially cold.

"Henry?" Regina called from the bottom floor. "I made waffles! Are you coming down?"

"Yeah, in a minute!" Henry replied from his room. "Mom, have you looked out the window?"

Regina frowned and tilted her head sideways as she walked to the foyer, opening the door to be greeted by a cold chill… and the sight of a mild frozen dew. She sneered as she stepped out to the brick path that led to the street, and looked at the cars parked, all covered in the exact same thin layer of frost. She folded her arms and exhaled, seeing the steam leave her lips as she went back indoors.

As she closed the door behind her, Henry stepped down the stairs. "Have you ever seen cold like this during this time of year?"

"I can't say I have… Maybe we can check the weather channel? We may be a little phantom town, but I'm sure we're pretty connected to the rest of the weather in Maine…"

Henry stepped into the study and turned on the TV to find the weather forecast. _"And for today we can expect some mild showers, as we have a weather system coming in from the northeast pacific, New York seems to be getting a fair share of drizzle, but as we head north, Conneticut and Rhode Island seem to have a little bit of sunshine and Maine, we have some winds coming in from the west, bound to blow some of those rainy clouds back into the sea, so wear a sweater._"

Henry turned off the TV and huffed, putting his hands in his pockets. "Yep. I guess this… is Storybrooke freakiness all over again."

"Umph…" Regina shivered. "I'll get the heater started."

"I should call my mom."

Regina turned to him and frowned. "I thought you were going to spend the day with me…"

"Oh, I am, I totally am, I just…" He shrugged. "I don't know, I just get the feeling my sister has something to do with this."

Regina chuckled. "You think Lilly has frozen Storybrooke?"

"No… I think something else has, and whatever that may be, it's connected to her. I just… know."

"You… know." Regina licked her lips. "And just HOW would you know?"

"I don't know. I just do. And I also know that it has something to do with Killian getting his hand back. I knew something was coming, I just don't know what."

Regina stared at Henry with a suspicious furrow of her brow; few people were seers, and it took great power for a person to be one. Henry had never really displayed magical abilities, an oddity, considering his heritage, but divination was usually a gift bestowed upon female witches.

"Henry…" Regina walked to her son. "Do you… feel things like these often?"

"Ever since Lilly was born, actually. It just got worse when we came back and even more when I got my memories back. Why?" He shook his shoulders. "Y… you think something's wrong with me?"

Regina side-grinned. "I think that magic has finally caught up with you, young man."

"Wait… what?" He laughed lightly. "I may have grown a faint shadow of what will eventually become a moustache, mom, but I've got as much magic as the chaise in the living room."

"Divination is another form of magic, Henry." Regina grinned as she rubbed his arm. "One not quite as common… and one that is not acquired through training. Being a seer just happens." She sat down before him. "Have you seen things, Henry? In dreams? Or just in your mind?"

Henry licked his lips repeatedly before heaving a sigh and sitting down. "I… I didn't want to say anything, I… I thought it was just my imagination."

Regina smiled fully and put an arm around her adopted son. "Well… imagination goes a long way." She rubbed his shoulder. "Come on. What is in your mind?"

Henry swallowed and shook his head. "My… sister. Something is happening, very soon. I saw this weather, this… ice. In my head. And there is this kind of voice that keeps telling me about good and evil coming face to face soon, but…" He looked at Regina. "Isn't that what always happens? This IS Storybrooke."

Regina studied his words. "Why do you think Lilly has something to do with all this, Henry?"

He rubbed his hands together. "I… don't know, I just… keep seeing her labeled as something. Like, my mom is The savior?"

Regina's smile vanished. "Henry… what is Lilly? What is her label?"

"She is… The Healer. I don't even know what that means. Do you?"

Regina faked a grin and pulled Henry to herself; as the boy leaned on his mother's shoulder, Regina's face went from grin to pained scowl.

So Lilly was The Healer…

How to explain to her mother and father that their adorable toddler had a specific purpose... and that said purpose would quite likely claim her life?

"I… have no idea what that means, Henry."

"Well, I'll have to find out. I don't know why, but I just can't shake the feeling that Lilly and my mom and dad are in danger…"

"Your 'dad'?" Regina turned with a sneer. "The pirate's your 'dad', now?"

Henry shrugged. "Might as well be, he's ok, and he's the only one I have now. So… I'll just give them a call and check on Lilly and then we can jump face first into those waffles."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The sudden loss of power caught every inhabitant by surprise.

It must have been somewhere around six in the afternoon and the chill factor slowly dropping, when the lights of the entire town went down.

Emma was already on patrol duty with David when driving down Main, all lampposts went out together with the sunset.

"What the hell…?" Emma turned her head in all directions.

David huffed. "Looks like a major one too, look down the road." He nodded in the direction of the road ahead. "As far as the eye can see."

Emma shook her head. "You know… we got kind of a cryptic call from Henry today… Kind of said something was bound to happen soon. Phew…" Emma shivered and crossed her arms, cradling herself.

"You suppose it had something to do with the weather change?" David frowned, looking up at the sky, which was fast starting to change from the usual hue of blues and reds to a more serene starry black.

"I have… my doubts." Emma said, her eyes set ahead on the road to the town line.

David's gaze followed and he gasped mildly. "What the…"

"Well, there you go." Emma completed, equally surprised.

Before them was a fifty feet wall of ice.

"Who does this kind of thing?" David shook his head.

Emma shook her head. "I have no idea." She stepped out of the patrol and walked to the wall. She reached into her coat pocket and produced her mobile to dial for home; it had been Killian's day off and he was sure to be at home with Lilly.

"Hello?"

"Killian, you have to get over here…"

"Swan? Love, is everything all right? We lost power here. Lilly and I were just casting figures on the wall and…"

"What if I told you that we're trapped in ice?" She smiled. "Quite literally, trapped?"

Killian frowned. "Are you well?"

"Let's just say the whole town's grounded; we've all been locked inside Storybrooke by a wall of ice taller than Jericho."

The captain turned to look at his daughter and her cubes; she still used them for more complex wording, and even when she was unable to hear the conversation, she had already written the words MUST GO.

"Well, my first mate here says we have to check this out, so…"

"You're seriously NOT thinking of dragging our two year old to the town line, are you?"

Killian looked at his daughter. "Well, your mother's currently taking over as mayor, since she was the one to cast the new curse;: then Henry's over at Regina's, your father is with you so… I can't see as I have any other choice. Besides…" He grinned at the sight of the little girl staring straight at him in a "don't-you-dare-leave-me-alone" sort of way. "I reckon she wouldn't be pleased, from the looks of it."

Emma rolled her eyes. "Fine. Just bundle her up, it's kind of… cold."

"Aye, aye, mam." He smiled as he hung up. He then turned to his daughter. "!Well then, my darling, seems we have a little mission in our hands. Are you up for a little adventure?"

"Aye!" She smiled.

"Right then, let's get your jacket and gloves then, sweet pea, we're meeting mummy."

Lilly nodded and fiddled with her cubes.

BIG WALL.

Killian huffed and shook his head. "I don't think I'll ever get used to that." He then smiled at his child. "Aye love. We have to check that out."

IMPORTANT

Hook frowned. "Wh… why, my love? Why is it important?"

Lilly shrugged and held her hands out for her father to carry her. Killian sighed. "Aye. First you spook me and then you won't tell. Very well…" He picked her up and took her to her room to fit her with a warm jacket.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Hook. Didn't know you'd be joining us… with… my… granddaughter in tow." David huffed.

"BADAUAUTFF DAVID!" Lilly admonished her grandfather.

Killian giggled. "She's part of the team, mate, and she knows it. Besides, I get a distress call from a fair maiden and I'm on the spot."

Emma shook her head. "I wasn't in distress."

"Well, in case you were wondering, the bloody thing goes the whole way around."

"Wait…" David held his hand out. "You mean the wall has closed off the whole town?"

"Aye, that it has."

"Aye!" Lilly echoed, making her mother and grandfather smile.

"And I can assume…" Killian pointed at a fallen power pole. "… this is the cause for the loss of power?"

Emma smiled. "Yeah… You're quite the 21st century guy, aren't you?"

Killian shrugged with a grin.

David sighed. "Whoever did this, wanted to entrap us, I just can't see why…"

"Kill us all off. One by one." Killian shrugged. "Basic war strategy, mate. That's what I'd do… or would have done."

The patrol radio blared and David turned to Hook. "Gotta take that. Everyone's going ballistic without the power. Here…" he held his arms out for Lilly. "I'll take her to the car, she's better off in there."

"Aye. Go on, love." Killian handed her over to her grandfather. "Do as you're told."

Without protesting, Lilly accompanied her grandfather to the police car.

"so…" Emma shivered. "What do you think?"

"I think I should have brought the champagne, love, in light that we're standing in the world's largest ice bucket." He smiled, hand on his buckle, in his old flirty style.

Emma rolled her eyes with a smile. "Flirting… Do you really think this is the time?"

"As good as any, given that this is bloody Storybrooke and something's bound to go awry at any given opportunity, so I say…" He bit his lower lip and pulled her by the waist. "Seize the moment…" He kissed her cheek as Emma studied the wall with wide eyes.

"Why would anyone want to kill off the whole town? It doesn't make any sense."

He shrugged. "Well, in a town infested with magic, you never know…"

"No…" Emma shook her head. "I think this is just about the wall. Someone's trying to stop someone else from leaving town."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Just a hunch…" she snatched the torch from his hand. "Stay here and keep that champagne in the ice bucket, I'm going to take a closer look…"

Killian huffed as Emma walked to the wall and David caught up with him. "Didn't go with her?"

"She asked me to stay." He huffed. "Besides, the wall looks sturdy enough."

"You do remember what happened the last time she said she'd take a closer look at something, right?" David hissed.

Killian shot his eyes at him. He damn well knew: They wound up getting stuck in another time for six months. A sudden flash of panic crossed his face. He turned to see if Lilly was secured in the car before rushing over to the spot where Emma had entered through a hole in the ice wall.

They soon found her to be in the company of a pale, beautiful young woman, with a long, platinum braid and a blue, flowing dress.

"Emma!" Killian shouted, startling the young girl.

"Hey, it's ok! It's ok!" Emma held her hands out.

The young beauty turned a fear stricken face and held her hand out, a mild bluish-white glow emanating from the palm of her hand.

"Magic…" David hissed as he drew his gun and pointed it at the girl. "FREEZE!"

"Odd choice of words..." Killian huffed.

"STAY BACK!" The woman barked back.

Emma looked at both her husband and father. "Guys, it's ok, put the gun down!"

The ground rattled and suddenly, yet another wall of tall shards of ice rose from where they were all standing. Emma was knocked back to the ground before Killian's helpless stare.

This ice lady had encased the both of them into an ice cave, leaving David and Hook outside.

Instantly, Hook stood up and ran to the wall. "EMMA!" He shouted as he desperately tried to carve through the ice with his bare fingers. "Ugh, where's the bloody hook when I need it?"

Soon enough, he began to leave a trail of blood.

David reached him and stopped him. "That's not gonna get us anywhere!"

Killian pulled his arm back. "I am not leaving her in there! I'm not giving up!"

"We won't! But that's not gonna help! OK?"

"Emma…" Killian panted, his face contorted with fear. "Well, use that bloody black device she took with her!"

David nodded and reached for his walkie on his waist. "Emma! Emma answer us, do you copy?"

Silence.

"EMMA!"

A hissing sound of white noise came before the muffled sound of Emma's voice came through. "Dad, Killian, I'm ok… can you hear me?"

Killian snatched the radio from David. "SAY AGAIN, LOVE!"

"Listen, guys… I'm in here with this girl, her name is Elsa. She's looking for her sister and I think there's something about… danger? She has a necklace. Gold will know."

"Why am I not bloody surprised…" Killian huffed.

"Killian…"

"Aye, sweethreart, I'm here…"

"I… Is Lilly ok?"

"She's in the car." David spoke into the radio. "Why?"

"Wh… whatever you do… k… keep her safe, ok?"

"Emma?" Killian once again took the device from David.

"Keep the little one safe!" Came an unfamiliar voice. "Or everyone in this town will freeze!"

David and Hook exchanged a worried glance before they both ran madly back to the car. Hook took the shotgun seat and turned to look at his daughter, who had settled to sleep in the back. "She's ok, she's…" he frowned as David joined him. "Mate, look…"

David turned and frowned. "Is she…?"

"She's shivering…" Killian hissed before promptly leaving the front seat to enter the back, holding Lilly to him. "Oh bloody hell…" he turned to David. "She's cold… It's happening again. GO GO GO!"

David started the engine and sped, siren on, to Gold's place of business.

Like with his dreams and nightmares, it seemed Lilly was taking in and living through whatever her mother was experimenting; so now, it wasn't just Emma that had to be saved from freezing inside an ice cave.

It was Lilly too.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Emma shivered and wrapped her hands around her elbows, smiling at the blonde beauty, who looked even more terrified than Emma felt. "W… well, that's quite the show…" She smiled.

"I'm very powerful. Your people should really stay back."

"Yeah, well, that's crystal clear now, so if you'll just… maybe… undo what you did, I can… get out and leave you to your… b-building walls, thing."

Elsa licked her lips. "Not until I get what I need."

Emma swallowed and shivered. "Y… you can't control this, c-can you?"

"You know nothing about me."

"I do… I know me, I can't c… co… control my magic at times."

Elsa turned a bewildered stare at Emma. "You have magic?"

"Yeah…" Emma grinned, her lips turning slightly blue. "B… But I can't always…g…get a g…grip o-on it. God…" she chuckled. "Damn, it's cold… Listen, wh-whatever you need, m-my son makes ah-h-hell of a g-good hot cocoa. W-we could ta-talk this over a c-cup of those, wh-what do you s-say? Hm?"

Elsa saw how Emma started to lose color. "Who were those people out there?"

"I to-told you, one was my dad, th-the other's my hu-husband."

"He looked familiar." She nodded.

"Yeah, well…" Emma's teeth were chattering hard. "He-he's fr-from Aren-d-delle, like you…"

Elsa blinked twice. "So you are the Savior and he's the Captain I was told about?"

"Y… you were t-told of us?"

She nodded vehemently with a smile. "Yes. Your daughter! She's the healer! She's the one who will defeat Her!"

Emma frowned. "H-her?"

Elsa nodded again. "The snow queen. My aunt."

"Oh…" Emma nodded. "I'd l-like to see th-that… if I l-live though th-this…" she giggled, feeling dizzy. "I just… I'm go-going to r-rest a l-little I…"

"No, NO! EMMA!" Elsa reached her swiftly. "Come on, tell me more about her, about your daughter!"

Emma swallowed; her tongue felt like it had been thrown into a tub of molasses. "L-l- Lilly? Sh-she's t-t-two…" She swallowed again. "She's go-got m-m-m-magic a-as well."

Elsa worriedly tried to keep Emma's hands warm. "And you said you also had a son! What's his name?"

Emma smiled. "You j-just want me to s-s-stay aw-w-wake because you know that if I sleep, I-I-I'll d-d-die." Emma lay her head down on the iced ground.

"You won't die… oh, god, please don't die." Elsa touched her face. "I'm sorry, I really am! I couldn't control this! "

"I know…" Emma said softly before closing her eyes and just shivering in place.

"Oh, no… Emma?" Elsa shook her.

Emma barely opened her eyes.

Elsa took the little black device and used it. "H… Hello? HELLO!"

She was practically screaming into it.

"B-b-button."

"Emma!" Elsa ran back to the blonde woman on the floor. "What did you say?"

"Y-you h-have to p-push that b-b-utt-tton and talk and th-then re-release it."

"Oh…" elsa nodded and followed the instructions given. "HELP…"

Instantly Killian's voice sounded. "EMMA?"

"No, I'm … I'm Elsa. I…" she sat on the floor with Emma and grabbed her hand. "Emma's with me, please, come back. She's passed out, almost… she's freezing over, I can't … do anything, please come for her!"

In spite of her waning lucidity, the sudden silence over the radio told Emma that Killian was probably starting to panic.

"G… give me the r-radio…" she reached out a shaky, blue nailed hand. Shaking insanely, she pressed the button. "K-Killian…"

He came back immediately, his voice filled with worry. "Emma… Are you ok?"

"A l-little c-cold…"

"Stay with me love…"

"I'd like to…."

"Then do so, please!"

"Y-you re-remember the-the beanst-stalk, Killian?" She barely whispered. "Wh-wh-when we met?"

"Aye…"

She could tell he was probably weeping by now.

She smiled. "T-take th-that wi-with you…"

"Swan don't you dare give up! We're coming to get you out love!"

"L… Lilly. T-t-take care of L-L-Lilly…"

"Swan…"

"I L-l-ove y-you s-s-so much-ch…"

Elsa sniffed and shook Emma slightly. "No, no don't! Emma please don't!"

"I'm… so cold…" Emma grinned.

"Emma? It's Dad!"

Emma could barely manage to push the button, her fingers completely numb. "D-dad…"

"Listen, Killian's all but lost it. We're outside the wall, sweetheart." He tried hard to keep it together. "Listen, you have to fight!" He swallowed hard. "Lilly is feeling what you're feeling, Emma, if you let yourself get beaten, we will lose you both!"

Emma's eyes shot wide open, thinking of her little girl. "No… no…"

Elsa took the radio from her. "Wh… what can I do?"

David told elsa that he remembered her sister, Anna, and that he had faith that she was probably in the town if her necklace was there; While he was at it, Killian desperately hugged Lilly, who was turning blue and was starting to fall asleep. "No no, Lilly, come on! Wake up! Don't!" he looked up to David. "Bloody hell, man, whatever it is you're doing, do it faster!"

Soon enough, a hole began to appear from within the cave.

Elsa, it seemed, had regained her control.

Killian swiftly handed the little girl over to David, who instantly cradled her and tried to cover her up with his jacket. Hook reached into the hole and pulled Emma out. "EMMA!" He screamed as he wrapped her in his arms, digging his nose into her neck. "Bloody hell, Emma… " he panted.

"LILLY!" Emma moaned.

"I got her right here, Emma, come on." He looked at Hook. "Let's go home and get them warmed up, buddy." David nodded. He turned to look at a very contrite-looking Elsa and spoke to her as they all walked away from the ice wall, Killian carrying Emma in his arms.

"You did it, Elsa."

"I endangered both Emma and the Healer, you owe me nothing."

"You didn't mean to. We're not giving up on you. Now… just help us get home, warm these two up, and talk to me about Anna and this… witch we have to defeat…"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Emma woke far too early. Her fingers and toes were still aching, but that was always a good sign that frostbite was receding and blood was circulating warmth into her limbs. She looked at the sleeping little girl in her arms and she kissed her forehead gently.

As she raised her eyes, she saw Killian, his head leaning ion the side of the bed, sleeping uncomfortably.

"Killian?" She shook him gently.

The man jumped. "Swan!"

"Hey hey! … it's ok. I'm right here."

He breathed deep and swallowed, heaving with relief. "Are you well?"

"Still achy, but I'll be fine."

"Hmm…"

She grabbed his hand. "I'm sorry I put you through this. She didn't mean to…"

"I know that love." He nodded. "But I nearly… I could have lost you both and…"

"You didn't." She squeezed his hand.

Killian gulped hard and his gaze was averted to the sleeping toddler, her cheeks once again pink and glowing warm. "Aye…"

Emma sighed and pulled the heavy quilt up. "Why don't you come in bed with us? What the hell are you doing sitting up like that?" She whispered.

Hook grinned. "If you need anything, I can easily stand and do it…"

"No…" Emma shook her head. "You're lying, that's not it."

The handsome captain huffed and chuckled. "You and your blasted superpower…" Emma merely grinned as he looked to the floor and licked his lips. "I… don't want to sleep, Emma. If I do and given the events that transpired these past few hours, I'll probably have nightmares again, no thanks to this sodding hand of mine…" He reached out and caressed Lilly's head. "And you know what will happen love: she will dream it too. She needs her rest after today, she's had enough."

Emma gave Killian an ached stare before she spoke. "She was also freezing…"

He looked into her eyes. "She was damn near purple, Swan. I've never been more frightened in my whole bloody life, and that spans for three hundred years."

Emma bit her lip. "I think I know why that happens."

Hook shot his eyes straight into hers "Do you? Why?"

Emma pulled her body up a little and leaned on the headboard. "Elsa said something about Lilly being the Healer."

"Aye, that's what Gold said." He concurred.

"She takes onto herself whatever ache or pain the people she loves are feeling. Like Elsa, she can't help or control it. It started with Zelena… she lost a part of her essence there; so every time someone feels something, she feels it to…" She addressed a helpless stare into her husband's eyes. "And I think that every time she heals someone or goes through this, it takes a small toll on her." Emma shook her head. "She's only two and she barely made it through the whole Zelena ordeal. How is she supposed to confront some… ice witch… and survive?"

For once, Killian had no words of comfort to offer. He simply looked at the sleeping child in the bed and sighed as he shed his jacket and boots, sliding into the bed with his wife and daughter, holding them both to himself, knowing that perhaps, in the end, it was indeed a matter of time before he lost one of the two women he loved more than anything on earth.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The dawn came with a mild chill; the walls gave Storybrooke a lower temperature, but at least they had ceased to grow, once Elsa and the Charmings had had a chance to talk over her fears.

On the corner by the docks, a new business opened its doors. The name of the establishment was "Any Given Sundae", and on the window display case were shown some of the most enticingly delicious looking ice creams one could imagine.

By mid-day and in spite of the chill that whiffed through the streets, there was a line ten minutes long of people hoping to get a taste of ice cream.

And serving the delicious cones was a beautiful lady, with eyes bluer than the skies of fall and hair much like Emma's, long, and blond and flowing. Her smile was kind and her voice was soft and quiet. Everyone who got a cone from her also got a perfect smile and a kind "thank you" from her.

As business came to a closure, she leaned against the ice box…

And froze it all to a solid block of ice for the night.

At the same time, Lilly whimpered and cried. She refused to say why.… and neither Hook nor Emma were able to settle her uneasiness for at least

three hours.


	28. The seer

Killian Jones returned to Arendelle late one night, when he was sure to fool the coast guard and the head mariner. Everyone knew by then about his desertion, and none were too pleased by it, either. King Hans was the hero; how could it be that the claims of the young Jones Captain could hold any water? It had been Hans who had provided the people with shelter, food and all other basic necessities when the whole kingdom froze over, and he had seen to its safe return to warm summers.

Who was Killian Jones, but a filthy, no good pirate? And a traitor.

"Aye Cap'n, harbor visible at 27 degrees north…" the man at the crow's nest shouted.

Killian spun the helm to starboard and stopped it as soon as the vessel swiveled according to his desire. "Jennings, Macintosh and Jasper, raise main sail and release the anchor!" He ordered. "Cummings, Bloom, come here…" The two sailors approached the pirate captain. "Now, listen carefully: We're here for a purpose. There's a price on my head, a steep one, remember that. Trust… no one." He looked around him. "Lower the rowboat. You two are coming with me."

"Sir, no offense, sir, but…" Cummings smiled and swallowed. "How are we supposed to venture back into Arendelle unseen when the scouts have confirmed your face is plastered on every wall in the city? You, sir, are the most wanted man in town."

Killian winked at him. "They underestimate me, John. You just get the rowboat set. I'll instruct the first mate to sail into the creek, so that the Jolly may remain hidden. Once we get what we came for, we shall leave unnoticed."

Cummings nodded with a grin. "And what magnificent loot are we to take with us this time, then, Cap'n?"

Killian smiled a devilish grin. "One that will hit the very core of the King's sneaky heart. Tis not a treasure but for those who know what said article contains within."

Peter Bloom nodded with muted excitement.

As soon as the ship had anchored and Killian had instructed his first mate to sail it to the creek while still under the cloak of night, he retrieved into his quarters, to emerge a changed man: He freed himself of his long hair and cleaned the eyeliner and rouge from his face. Clean shaven and his hair slicked back, wearing a cloak fit for a prince, he looked every bit the part of a court's gentleman. He smiled at his men and cackled as he adopted a mock-heroic pose.

"For this day, I shall be Duke Jonas Wimberley the second, from the westernmost edge of the Weatherpoint Hills." He turned to Bloom. "Edward, there's some clothes for you in my quarters, clean up and wear them. You shall be my personal servant. Cummings? There's an old uniform from the cove there, wear it. You shall be my seaman. Now, should anyone ask, you leave the answers to me. Are we clear on that?"

"Aye sir." Cummings nodded and he and Bloom ran to change into their disguises.

As the dawn started to shine in greens and bashful pinks on the shores of Arendelle, Killian and company rowed their way to a frigate ship, slyly climbed up the side ropes and descended, acting like ordinary first class passengers.

Killian took a deep breath, inhaling the smells of his youth: The deliciousness of pomegranates covered in nuts and honey, the freshly baked bread and the pungent yet endearing smell of the resin used to coat the wooden planks of the ships at the harbor.

He took a carriage to the castle.

With his loyal crewmen eagerly playing their roles as seaman and slave, Killian presented himself at the front gates of the King's residence. When the guards crossed their lances before Killian's nose, he took a step back and smiled with a courtesy. "My apologies, chaps! Please, instruct your ruler that I am an envoy from Weatherpoint Hills. I bear a gift for your king and a message of goodwill."

"You have a name, sir?" The guard asked sternly.

"Why, don't we all, kind soldier." He laughed charmingly. "I am Duke Jonas Wimberley. I believe I have been expected for quite a while…"

The guard took a long look at his list. "It was reported that your vessel was overtaken by pirates, sir…"

_Aye, and your precious Duke sits nude atop a rock on Cutthroat Island, I reckon his fine, blue-blooded flesh will make good bait for the razor toothed allies of the world of piracy_, Killian thought.

"That it did, my good chap, and thus my delay. I was returned to my land in exchange for ransom. Alas, it took me a good month to recover from the shock. Those dastardly pirates…" He pointed in the direction where he and his crewmen had descended from the frigate. "You may enquire the boson of that fine frigate over there, he saw us descend."

The guard looked at Killian from head to toes. There was no chance this courteous, well-trained, handsome and refined gentleman could be anything but what he claimed. He nodded and grinned. "Aye, Sir. Let him pass…" He barked at the gatesmen, who allowed Killian and the two pirates to pass.. "Welcome to Arendelle, Milord. Please, come with me."

Killian followed the man, making idle chitchat with the guard as the two crewmen tagged along behind.

He was asked to stop at the door of the audience hall, and not three seconds later, heard his name announced.

He paced in, not without hesitation at first, but then sure of himself, a man on a mission, his gaze fixed on the handsome yet cowardly figure of the king and his red-headed queen. As soon as he reached the first three steps up to the thrones, he went down on one knee. "Ah! Your majesty!"

Hans stood up with a smile and his hands welcoming him with an open gesture. "Duke! I feared that bastard Killian Jones had sent you swimming with the sharks." He placed his hands on his shoulders. "Good to find you alive and well, Milord."

"Seems the cowardly pirate only intended to keep me captive for ransom. I was released, quite unharmed." Killian smiled back. "I finally came to fulfill my promise for audience and parlay with the famously kind ruler of Arendelle."

"You are most welcome to our land, Duke. Meet my queen? Anna of Arendelle."

The young woman raised a sad smile to Killian's face. "Welcome, Milord." She whispered before lowering her face once again.

Killian was no expert in female emotion… but he had met enough ladies in his life to know fear and sadness in a woman's eyes, and queen Anna's gaze was filled with both.

"Come, we shall talk our boorish political nonsense somewhere private, Duke." He pulled Killian by the shoulder. "Fancy a drink of Cognac? I have some of the finest harvests here…"

"Can't deny a drink when so kindly offered by the King himself." Killian smiled.

He and Hans sat for a straight hour, talking about make-believe gibberish Killian was able to bring up in the spur of the moment, and the King was legitimately smitten by his charm. At some point, Killian almost lost it when the King had commented that he had lost a valuable captain no thanks to the cowardice of the captain's younger sibling, who had slain his own brother to overtake his position as captain.

He drew a deep breath and smiled a tight-lipped grin. His mission was not done: He'd see to the King's end, for sure.

He had a small concentrate of Dreamshade he had salvaged from Neverland, and intended to use it on Hans, to see him crawl and die, avenging Liam. But not before he obtained what he had come for.

Just before nighttime, the King himself had shown him the treasury. As a hot-blooided pirate, it was hard for Killian not to smile before the sight of such unbelievably large heaps of gold and silver and gems of all shapes and sizes… but when he saw the silver and bronze urn, he knew he was close to his goal. His scouts had already informed him of the contents of the urn. Unleashing them would bring the lineage of this bastardy King to an end.

Sure enough, as night fell, Killian and his two-man posse abandoned their quarters and entered the treasury unseen (the two men slit a couple of throats to get the deed done) and Killian unceremoniously took the urn from its sitting place. "I've no clue what it is this coward hides in here… but he will feel it before he draws his final breath." He reached into his pocket and produced the now broken emblem from Liam's satchel, rubbing it affectionately with his thumb. "The kingdom will know of his cowardice, brother… You will be avenged."

In the shade of night, he and his men scurried out and returned to the Jolly Roger that hid behind the creek.

He returned to the castle by himself; he stopped by the kitchen and found the two cups pertaining to the king and queen, and he silently produced his little vial of Dreamshade, and lined the larger cup's edge with it. "See how your cowardly lips relish on this… weapon of yours. And then, you will know how your good Captain felt when he passed away due to your own pusillanimity… "_King" _Hans."

As the morning light shone through the now permanently opened doors and windows of the castle, there was a collective roar, as guardsmen and soldiers rummaged through the halls, in search of the vase that had gone missing.

Fully clad in his princely garb and cool as a cucumber, Killian paced into the hall to meet the now flustered King as he paced anxiously, hollering something about this being his downfall.

Queen Anna looked a little less downhearted than the day before. Killian's heart swelled. No matter how much of a pirate he could be, there was still that smear of heroism that thrived on helping a damsel in distress.

"My dear King, I was woken by the sound of a shrieking armored guard!" He shrugged. "What seems to be the problem?"

Hans stopped and stared at Killian before shaking his head. "My dear Duke, an essential piece of my collection has been… stolen, this very night, as you slept." He huffed. "It is the most precious item in my treasury."

"Oh dear." Killian shook his head. "If I may be of any assistance! For the time being, I think it wise for you to sit down and calm yourself, milord."

Hans huffed and nodded. "Wise wording, Duke. Wise indeed…" He sat on the throne next to Anna, who was now eyeing Killian suspiciously. "Will you… join me for a morning cap?"

"Only too delighted, Sire!"

A servant rushed a seat to the King's side and Killian took his position. Hans pointed his finger to the kitchen and soon after, three cups were produced.

The large one was immediately taken by Anna.

Killian's heart stopped; He remembered then, Hans was a consort King, and even if he barked out orders like he were in charge, Anna was indeed the heir to the throne; thus, the larger cup was hers. If she died, he would be doing Hans a great favor… and he would foe himself with the famous sister of the red-headed monarch for all times. Not to mention he would have the death of a good, innocent princess in his hands.

"No!" He jumped, knocking the cup of wine from Anna's hand, only an inch before it touched her lips.

The whole room started at Killian. His cover was blown.

"You… dare attack my queen…" Hans stood up as Killian paced back, slowly pacing down the three steps. "You… you're no duke…"

Killian held his blue gaze straight into Hans's eyes, and finally, a large smile shone through. "Well, I must say I'm glad it's all over. Being a duke is tedious business indeed." He removed his cloak to reveal his leather-studded garb. "I have to say, I've had harder times entering nurseries, Sire…"

Hans's jaw fell. "Killian Jones."

Killian laughed and drew his sword. "If you'd be a man of honor, majesty, I'd sooner ask your guardsmen to put down their lances. Come now… Draw your sword…"

Hans sneered. "I intend to…" He jumped on Killian and drew his sword as he and the pirate engaged in battle.

Anna gasped and ran top the door, ordering the guards to open the gates and announce to the harbormaster that the revolution had begun.

Being the incredibly apt swordsman he was, Killian fenced his way out of the castle and jumped out of a turret into the water, three hundred feet below. The fall hurt in places he could not imagine, but he knew he had to swim for it if he was to live to see another day.

And while he regretted no having killed Hans, he knew he had at least given the young Queen Anna a chance at breaking free….

And even if he did not know it, he held the true heir to the throne in his ship, saving her for better times ahead, and unaware that these times were not to be. Some years later, a confrontation between Blackbeard's vessel and the Jolly Roger found Killian's treasures looted. The urn was lost, together with his mother's ring. The ring he had found in Gold's shop. But Gold kept the urn…

Until now.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

It was still really early in the morning when Killian Jones woke with a sudden craving… for his wife.

The last few days had been riddled with uncertainty, what with Lilly sometimes being perfectly normal and suddenly switching into the foulest of moods, then with Henry suddenly manifesting some odd magical skill as a seer, they had hardly had any time for themselves. Since long before, Killian was keen to make use of the little spare moments, especially when he knew what being married to the Savior implicated: run, escape, hurry here, fight there and huff with relief before flopping down dead on a bed, praising all gods for the chance at another day.

And while he wouldn't trade it for the largest loot, he still desired for at least a few moments' peace.

This morning was one such moment. There was a pleasant stillness in the air as the sun rose far in the western horizon, pinks and yellows far in the distance, shining a faint glow through the window, a glow that bounced off her golden hair as she slept, her head tilted to the side and her lips partially open. He grinned at her picture-perfect beauty. How on earth had he managed to win the heart of this gorgeous creature?

She felt his left hand trace her cheek with the back of his fingers and she stirred gently, grinning as she whimpered awake. "Why the hell do you always rise so early?" she moaned ever so softly.

"It came with the job description, my love." He grinned, leaning his body in and gently tracing her ear with the tip of his tongue before placing a gentle kiss on her earlobe. Emma shuddered.

"Henry's here…" She whispered with a smile, but feeling her hand involuntarily (or not) encourage him by rising to his hair.

"I've locked the door, love…" He whispered into her ear, his left hand slowly descending down her shoulder, her waist… and back up to fondle a soft, gentle breast.

Emma sighed with contentment as she turned around to face her captain. She opened her eyes and met the blueness of his own and as he pressed his body to hers she could feel him, all of him, more than ready to make love to her with body and soul.

"You're keen…" She giggled as she traced his bare back with her fingers.

"For you? Always…" He descended on her neck, licking, nibbling and kissing as he seared down to her chest. He tugged up at the hem of her sleeping tee and Emma raised her arms to allow him to slip the garment over her head. He smiled at the sight of her. "Bloody hell, Swan, no matter how many times I do this, it's always such a welcoming sight…"

Emma giggled as he once again started tracing his lips to her left nipple, then her right. "I pinned you for a boob guy since the very first time we did this…"

"That, I am…" He spoke, his mouth busy as he savored the texture of her hardening buds. He then went back up to her, his breath picking up speed, one hand pulling his own sweatpants down and the other caressing her hair. "Gods, Emma, I still want you so bad…"

Emma smiled and willingly raised her own hips as she pulled down her pajama bottom, the sun now glowing a little brighter through the curtains. "Still?" She laughed. "Question is, will you still want me when I look like an old prune?"

He chuckled as he led his hand to her core. "I believe I've answered that question before, and that answer would be yes… yes… yes…" And with each yes, came a caress, a touch that instantly started to melt her in his arms. "And you, savior? When I'm a hairless old geezer with nothing but a backlog of memoirs, will you still want me thus?"

She gasped as he slid his fingers inside of her and pulled his head to her chest. "If you keep up the way you're going, I'll want you till kingdom come…"

He chuckled and rose to look into her eyes. He adored staring at her face as she slowly wound up and up and up… and he loved to tease her just before she reached orgasm…. Only to wind her again.

Just when he thought she could never look any more beautiful, she regaled him with these moments, her agitated gasp as he entered her body with his own, her mild moaning that told him just how well me made her feel, how loved and unique she really felt with his every thrust and caress, and with him giggling and telling her to lower her moans so as to not wake the little one and her teen brother. He loved the feel of her, smooth, warm and his, so entirely his, and hard as she climaxed around him, making him groan with delight and love, and when he had had too much for him to control, she'd smile, pull him deeper and encourage him, took him to his own deliciously cringing moment of release.

He felt loved as well.

Then he'd just hold her there, looking at her, pearly sweat drops sliding down her face and his, caressing her and kissing her as he tried to regain breath and heart rhythm, always reminding her how much he adored her, worshipped her… loved her.

That morning started off so well, no one could have guessed what ot would entail in later hours.

By nine, they were both out of bed, bathing and just smiling unavoidably in a lovesick fashion at each other as they set about their day's beginning. Lilly looked decidedly happy as she played with her older brother a rather improvised version of hide and seek. She was quite certainly beyond the whole "cover my face so you won't see me" thing, but it still amused her to think Henry was far less witty than her and she still delighted in hiding from him and signaling a little 'shh', her finger to her lips to her father as he helped Emma with breakfast.

In his entire existence, Killian had never been as happy and blissfully pleased with his life as he was when he too, joined in the game, his stepson and himself pretending to be outsmarted by the two-year-old little prodigy.

Just after they finished breakfast and Henry was readying himself for school, a tap on the door startled them. Henry opened and found a somewhat uneasy Elsa standing there. By then, she had established an open camaraderie with Emma, who understood what it felt like to have powers she couldn't quite control.

"Hey!" Emma grinned as she welcomed the blonde Queen indoors. "Elsa! What brings you here so early?"

Elsa sighed and grinned, but the sudden flurry of snowflakes coming down on her head told another story.

"Blimey… Here we go." Killian pressed his lips together as he simply headed to the service room for the mop. He was glad and relieved he had taken the opportunity to make love to his Swan earlier, because from the looks of it, they were about to embark on yet another antsy day of Storybrooke insanity, and gods knew how long that would take to solve.

"You… ok?" Emma winced.

Elsa was about to talk when Lilly suddenly grabbed her from the knees and hugged her hard. "Elsaaaaaa." She grinned.

No sooner had the little girl touched her, the flurry stopped and Elsa smiled at her mother. "Your little one really is a healer."

"Yeah…" Emma placed a strand of hair behind her ear. "I just hope it doesn't… wear on her."

Elsa shook her head with a grin. "Not while she's surrounded by love." She turned to look at the pirate as he returned with a mob on his hands, ready to swab the 'deck'. "I… I'm sorry."

"No need to apologize, lass, you mean no harm." He grinned as he placed the mop on the floor and cleaned away the watery remains of the snowflakes that melted on contact.

"Actually, captain, it's you I need to talk to." She nodded.

Killian gulped and nodded. "Aye. Please sit down, love. I'll join you briefly…"

Emma frowned. "Is… this… private?"

Elsa shook her head. "I would… hope not." She sat in the living room and looked at a photograph of Killian, Emma and Lilly, all hugging and smiling, taken by Henry. She grinned. "Such joy…" She looked at the couple as they joined Elsa in the living room. "I could only wish for this, but given my nature, I doubt any man would be willing to share my bed when he knows he could wake to s frostbitten toes…"

Emma giggled and gave her husband a shy grin. "You'd be surprised. I pushed this poor guy off the bed in my sleep…"

"Twice." Killian nodded.

Elsa laughed and looked at her hands.

"Come now, love, what's this you need to discuss?"

As Elsa drew breath to speak, Henry suddenly closed his eyes and seemed to be having a seizure; he collapsed backwards and fell to the floor.

Lilly also began to whimper and the lights flickered.

"HENRY!" Emma shouted as everyone made a beeline to the shaky young man on the floor.

Killian ran to the kitchen and grabbed a dishcloth, which he swiftly placed in Henry's mouth to prevent him from biting on his own tongue.

The boy suddenly shot his eyes open and gasped, tears sliding down as he sat upright, gasping for breath. "FROZEN! SHE'S FROZEN!"

Lilly cried aloud and the overhead light bulb blew up, making everyone flinch. Killian turned back to Henry and grabbed his face with both hands. "Are you well, m'boy?"

"Yeah, yeah…" He swallowed as he nodded. "But… my mom…"

"I'm right here!" Emma grabbed his hands, tears threatening to spill. "Henry, are you ok?"

He shook his head. "It'll happen… soon." He panted. "I just… saw it."

Elsa stared at Henry with a shocked and awed look. "You … you are a seer!" She knelt beside him. "What did you see?"

Henry looked at her. "My… mom… will be frozen. Her power is… too great." He looked fearfully into Elsa's gaze.

"Her…" Elsa gasped. "She is here?"

"Yeah… and … No one will be able to stop her… except… except…"

Killian rushed to collect Lilly to soothe her, but stopped dead in his tracks when he saw what she had written with her cubes.

"S… Swan? I think you'd better look at this."

Elsa, Emma and Henry all turned to look at Lilly. Her young mother gasped in horror.

IT HAS BEGUN.

Both Killian and Emma turned to look at Elsa, who looked terribly distraught. "She's… so young." She shook her head before she turned to look at Killian. "Captain, I need you to tell me everything that went on before you became a pirate…" She begged. "I can only remember my life up to the point where I was forced by my aunt to leave Arendelle and submit myself into the urn. What happened then? You had the urn! Where did you take it?"

"You… did?" Emma turned with a frown to Killian.

Killian sighed. "Aye. I stole it from the King, knowing only it was of great value to him. I had no clue what the contents where until we had that meeting about Lilly, where Gold told us you were inside, Majesty." He nodded. "I was only told that the absence of the urn might bring the King's downfall, and sure enough, your sister ignited the revolution as soon as I took the blasted vase." He stood up and paced. "Many years later, Blackbeard boarded the Jolly Roger and we were looted. He took the vase with all the other treasure." He turned his face to Emma. "The urn looks fairly worthless, treasure wise. Bloody hell, how could I have been so stupid?" He joined them. "Someone must have sent him! Known where I'd be!" He clenched his teeth. "Gold…"

Emma and Elsa exchanged a look before Henry cut in again. "It is him… but he's… being extorted. There's someone else behind all this…"

"My aunt." She nodded before looking at Henry. "Where is she? Do you know?"

Henry shook his head. "No. I just saw a woman in a white dress… Mom…" He felt tears in his eyes as he reached for Emma's hand. "Your heart. She will freeze your heart."

Killian felt a hand wrap around Emma's shoulders. Emma swallowed. "And Lilly?"

Henry looked at his sister, who looked appeased but just as serious as everyone else in the room. "She… she needs protection." Henry shook his head. "Or she too will die."

"No." Killian barked back.

"Only an act of the truest love can thaw a frozen heart." Elsa sighed.

Killian huffed. "Should it come to that, I shall kiss her. I am her true love, that's been beyond proven by now…"

"It will kill you." Emma shook her head.

"I don't care!" He snapped back. "I am not letting my wife or daughter or anyone die from this… freezing bitch… no offense there, my love…" He nodded in Elsa's direction.

Henry frowned.

"We might have another way…" He looked at Lilly. "We need to see my granddad… Gold, I mean. He has something, another relic. It might save us all…"

He stood up and took his phone. "We'd better gather up the gang."

Killian ran a hand down his face, now etched with worry. _How swiftly moods and moments can change in this town_, he thought.

"Lilly, honey…" Emma looked at her daughter. "Do you know what this lady looks like? Elsa's aunt?"

Lilly shook her head.

Emma swallowed. "But if you see her… will you know her?"

Lilly's face became dour, a darkness in her eyes that Emma had only seen in Killian, when he was still the twisted Captain Hook and he spoke of avenging Milah.

It made both she and Killian shiver when she blurted a coarse sounding "Aye."

"She will be merciless." Elsa shook her head.

"Done!" Henry chimed in, putting his phone away. "Meeting today at the living room in Granny's Inn."

Emma looked at henry. "I… assume you included yourself, kid?"

"Damn straight!" he nodded. "I'm fourteen and a seer, mom, you need my magic as much as you need my sister's and Elsa's and my mom's." he ran and hugged her. "I… don't want you to die, mom. You or Lilly."

Killian rolled his eyes up to Elsa helplessly and was discomforted to meet an equally helpless stare in her blue eyes.

"Daddy!"

Everyone turned to look at Lilly. She grinned at them.

ALL IS OK

He stood and carried his daughter, hugging her to him. "You're like a wee grown up in a babe's body, little love." He kissed her cheek. "I just hope you're right, darling girl, I really do…"

He saw Emma approach and held his arm out to embrace her. Then Henry joined. The little family held each other while Elsa grinned, hoping to one day see Anna again, and even Kristoff and his smelly reindeer for that matter, so that she could hug them both the same way the beautiful little family were hugging.


	29. Any Given Sundae

The cold chill in the air was not comparable to any odd weather pattern previously recorded in Storybrooke; there was an ominous quality to this particular brand of frosty breeze and there was little or nothing anyone could do to warm themselves up, even with the thickest jackets.

The local fear monger Leroy, known as grumpy the Dwarf, had tried to stir the people against Elsa; she had, after all, raised the walls.

What he didn't know was that Elsa, like most of them all, were mere pawns.

The true person responsible for all this had no intention of remaining longer than she needed to in order to achieve her main goal: And the name of that goal was Emma Swan.

After securing Lilly with Mary Margaret and Neal, Hook, David, Emma and Elsa all went off in search for this 'lady in white'; Henry had very vaguely described her as china white, blonde, and possessor of extraordinary but cold beauty, but was nevertheless unable to make a completely accurate description of her.

He only knew she was about to wreak havoc into their lives… and his little sister was possibly the only one with enough power to neutralize her.

But at what cost?

"So… I guess all we have to go on is… look for something that looks 'cold'?" David sneered.

Emma sighed. "Yep. Pretty much."

"Perhaps it would be a lot easier if we split up?" Elsa suggested.

Emma nodded. "Yeah. Killian, go with Elsa, I'll go with Dad…"

The pirate gave Emma a dubious stare. "Facing danger alone? Not a chance in hell."

Emma gave him a cheeky grin. "I know you require saving, here, Captain. So that's why I'm sending Elsa along to save your butt, should push come to shove." She winked at him. "She's pretty magical too."

"Very funny, Swan." He grimaced.

Emma chuckled and pulled David and Henry to one side as Hook and Elsa paced to the west.

"So…" Elsa grinned, as she walked side by side with the pirate. "How long have you and Emma been together?"

He tilted his head to the side and smiled. "That depends what you mean when you say 'together', love."

"Well, what it usually means."

"Our particular story is rather convoluted."

"Why don't you tell me YOUR account of it then, Killian?"

"Let's see…" He stopped and looked up, thinking. "We've known each other little over three years now, I think. Aye, we met some time ago, were sort of at odds with each other then, long story, maybe Emma can indulge you with that tale later on. Then there was Neverland where, I confess, I finally admitted to myself and everyone else that I was madly besotted by her, then there was that ghastly curse that kept us apart for a whole blasted year, then I returned for her to this realm and there I found out about our Lilly and…"

"Wait, wait…" Elsa smiled. "You spent a year apart and you didn't know she was…?"

Hook grunted, interrupting Elsa. "We only had but the one opportunity for us to be together before the curse washed over us the following morning, love, I had no way of knowing on such short notice. Had I known… "

"Lovely. Then what?" Elsa smiled, charmed by the story.

"Well, we returned here, sort of… grew closer, then there was the time portal where we spent six months stuck in the past with our daughter, got back here…" he frowned. "If I'm not mistaken, our wedding anniversary should have been a couple of weeks ago…" He looked stunned. "And neither of us recalled the date!"

"You got married in the past?"

He smiled at the memory and shrugged. "We did. A rather… intimate ceremony. Just the two of us."

"Very sweet."

"It usually is with Swan and I, when we're not out courting danger and trying to break each other free from glaciered ice caves…"

Elsa laughed and shook her head. "I apologize for that. I was pretty scared."

"Apology accepted, love. Now, about this aunt of yours, how come YOU don't recollect what she looks like?"

Elsa shrugged. "Must be all the time in that urn…"

"And yet you do remember her to be a relative…"

"Yes. Basically because we share a similar power. But that is all."

"Couldn't have been of much comfort, I reckon…"

"I can't even remember that!" She huffed. "It was like being… asleep."

He shook his head. "I'm sorry you had to go through that."

"That's ok. I was forced into it, it seems. Let's just find Her before she…"

"Shh…" Killian suddenly pulled Elsa behind a tree trunk. "Look over there…"

In the distance, they saw a regal looking lady, clad in a finely sequined white dress with a tall collar, pacing around the grass and creating what looked like an ice castle atop a tree stump.

"Look…" Elsa whispered. "That… that looks like my palace…"

"The one atop the hill? Aye, you were quite renowned for it." He squinted in the direction of the woman absent-mindedly adding details to her ice scale model. "And yes, it looks exactly like that."

Killian pulled Elsa to the ground behind a fallen log and reached into his pocket, to produce what he called the "Talking device". Elsa frowned. "What is that?"

He shook his head. "This realm has a few perks to it, but this one fails to impress me still. It's a device for talking to people at a distance… I don't bloody know. This button here, she calls it the Emma button, I press it and she answers, usually."

Elsa raised her brows and turned her face from the woman making the ice statue to Killian's funny 'talking device' as he held it to his ear. He then shook his head with a flustered expression. "Swan, what's the whole bloody point in me carrying this silly, ridiculous gadget around if you are never around when I use it?" He huffed and looked back to their nemesis before turning back down. "I think we've found her, love, we're at he west edge of the woods, get over here quick. Be careful, love…"

He put the gadget back in his pocket. Elsa chuckled. "You look kind of ridiculous."

"Agreed." He sighed.

Elsa addressed a pitying stare at the woman. "She… doesn't look dangerous… or evil."

"Take it from me, love, looks can be deceiving." He whispered back. I've no fondness of icebergs and I'd rather not get turned into one." He looked around him before looking at the woman once more before huffing. "We've waited long enough, we have to find Emma and David, let's go."

As he was turning around, Killian found himself suddenly unable to move from his spot. "What the…" He turned down to look at his leg and saw it trapped in a thick lump of ice.

"I'm sorry. I can't let you leave."

Her voice was soft, gentle, extremely kind… and it gave Killian cold chills as he turned to look at her. "So.." He smiled. "You are the She they all keep talking about."

"Hmm." She grinned kindly as she walked to him. "Like a true pirate, you seem to have no respect for royalty. It's 'Your majesty'… Killian Jones." She approached his face. "My, my, those drawings made in Arendelle for your capture do you no justice, Captain." She grabbed his face between her fingers. "You truly are the handsomest man to ever hoist a sail."

He grinned. "Aye, but not that you'd ever profit from my devilishly handsome looks there, love." He wrinkled his nose. "Not my type."

"I beg to differ." She grinned and gave him a gentle tap on his cheek as she turned to Elsa. "Sweet, sweet Elsa. We've so much catching up to do, dear."

"I know you." Elsa nodded coldly. "You're…"

"Family. Yes." She caressed Elsa's chin.

"Let him go. We just want to talk."

The woman smiled. "No. No you don't. You see… I know these… ordinary people fear me. They fear you. You see, we are… different." She walked to Killian with a cold smirk. "And even friends and family end up turning against us. I'm doing you a favor." She grinned. "Pity… he really is a good looking man."

She flailed her hand and at least thirty sharp and hard icicles suddenly hung over Killian's head. The pirate looked above and felt his heart stop as he realized the predicament he was really in.

"Wait… no!" Elsa held her hands out. "Leave him alone!"

"What? You want him for your play thing?" She smiled. "I'm afraid that as your closest of kin, I can't approve of this. He is, after all, just a pirate." She smiled at Elsa. "You will thank me for this… eventually." She held her hand up and the icicles rattled above Killian's head, dangerously close to collapsing.

"NOO!" Elsa cried as the first one fell inches from Killian's foot.

"Hey, Dairy Queen!" Came Emma's voice.

Killian didn't know whether to huff from relief or fear knowing Emma was there. Even if he knew he now stood a chance at living, she was exposed.

The blond woman turned wide eyed to Emma, her face aghast. "E… Emma?"

Everyone turned a shocked face to the savior, who frowned as she shook her head. "Do we know each other?"

The woman lowered her hand and composed herself. "No. We do not. But you've made quite a reputation for yourself…. Savior." She paced calmly in Emma's direction. "Do you really think your magic is a match for mine?"

"Well, there's one way we can find out."

Without warning she magically shoved the woman some eight yards away.

David used the opportunity to run to Killian, desperately trying to hack the ice with his Swiss knife.

"Mate, this is not working!" Killian huffed as he tried to pry his feet free from the ice. He looked up and saw the icicles dangling precariously over their heads. "Just… get the hell out of here, David, and take Emma and Elsa with you!"

"Just… shut up and keep moving your feet!" David growled back.

The woman sat up and saw the scene unfolding before her eyes; she had her gaze set on Emma, and as they exchanged a warning glare, she raised her hand again and blasted the icicles loose.

Killian ducked and tried to cover David, but Emma responded quickly, swiftly, not even thinking whether or not she'd be doing the right thing: A flick of her hand and both husband and father flew through the air, the ice from his feet smashing.

One more second and she'd have been both an orphan and a widower.

She and Elsa ran to where David and Hook had fallen. "Are you guys ok?" she shouted.

Killian and David nodded, still stunned. "That's… quite a display, love." Killian smiled.

Emma grinned and nodded, holding her hand out to help him stand while Elsa helped David.

When they looked around, the woman was gone.

Killian dusted his legs. "As I feared. It is the snow Queen."

"My aunt." Elsa shook her head.

"Hook, did you ever see her while you were in Arendelle?" David grunted as he stretched his back. (He felt he was starting to get a little too old for these things, but he was not ready to show that in front of a three hundred year old pirate who was twice as nimble as he).

Hook shook his head. "Alas, she seems to know my face, whereas I had only heard of her through word of mouth." He turned a smirk to Elsa. "And you thought she looked harmless…"

Elsa shrugged as Emma placed a hand on her shoulder. "Ok, so, have we any idea where the hell she is?"

"No…" David shook his head. "But something tells me she's not too far from home. Emma?" he tilted his head sideways. "She seemed to know you."

Emma huffed and paced. "I know… There's something that bothered me about her voice, it's like… I've heard it before. But I think I'd remember someone like that."

"Well, mate, let's be honest: She's the sheriff, the savior and royalty, I don't think there's a single soul in Storybrooke that doesn't know her." Hook shrugged at David. "And by the way… thanks for trying to get me out of there before… you know…"

David nodded and clapped an open hand against Hook's shoulder before turning back to Emma. "So where do you suppose she'd hide? There's not much for us to go with here any more…"

Emma turned to Elsa, who was enthralled, staring at the little ice castle. She caught up with her and sighed. "Are you ok?"

Elsa sighed. "Your husband almost got killed…"

"Yeah, well, both our lives are full of 'almosts'. I wouldn't lose any sleep over that if I were you." She turned her attention to the scale model. "Did you do this?"

Elsa shook her head with a nostalgic grin. "No. She did. But…" She sighed. "I made this castle back home in Arendelle. Full scale, I mean." She chuckled and turned to Emma. "It was just after my crowning ceremony. I had no control over my power whatsoever and… I ran. I ran and ran and ran until I reached a mountain top and I made my own ice castle, away from everyone, where I was sure I could never, ever harm another living soul." She laughed softly. "I had no idea that in doing so I kind of… froze Arendelle."

Emma frowned. "So… you WERE the one who caused that big freeze?"

"Oh no… No, no, that was HER. Arendelle was frozen for only two days when I did it. It was an accident. But when she took over, the entire kingdom was under snow for five years…" she grinned at Emma. "It was still under snow when I was forced into the urn."

Emma nodded and looked at the castle. "Why did she do this?"

Elsa shrugged. "My guess is… she inhabited it. After I left it and I was placed in the urn. To hide and make it seem as if I had been the one to curse the kingdom." She looked at Emma again. "Some family isn't at all what one would want."

Emma concurred. "Tell me about it. I was adopted when I was three and then sent back when these people learned they were having a kid of their own."

"Oh…" Elsa grinned and held Emma's hands.

The two girls exchanged a knowing grin.

"Hey, we have to go!" David suddenly exclaimed after looking at his mobile.

"What's going on? Someone saw her?" Emma ran back to where the pirate and her father stood.

David shook his head. "It's… Henry and your mother. they called in, told us that Regina… " He swallowed hard. "Regina collapsed on the floor and had white streaks on her hair. She's… she's freezing over."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Nursing… Mayor… MY ASS!" Snow hissed under her breath, her son in his pram and her granddaughter in her hand, as she paced through the grocery store, doing that which she had always done as choice and not obligation. "I was the best damn tracker in that team. They get to go out and do all the fun detective work, and here I am doing the friggin' shopping. Ugh…"

"Nonnie!" Lilly smiled as she pulled her grandmother to an isle where they had stuffed toy dogs for only five dollars each.

"Oh? You want one?" Snow smiled. "Ok, Lilly, tell you what, you pick one for your uncle Neal and one for yourself, ok?" She picked up the little girl and Lilly instantly picked a purple one for herself and a green one for Neal. As she handed the little boy his new tow, she also leaned in and kissed his head. "NEAL!" She smiled.

"That's right, he's Neal, and I am…"

"Nonnie!" she grinned again with a cackle.

"I'm grandma!" Snow smiled back.

Lilly shook her head in exaggerated motion. "Nonnie!"

Snow rolled her eyes and sighed. "Fine, Nonnie it is."

As she paid for her household groceries, Lilly was babbling things at baby Neal and oddly, he seemed to reply, making Lilly giggle. The cashier smiled at the two kids. "Adorable! Big sister's really protective, isn't she?"

"Oh…" snow smiled kindly and shook her head. "The little boy is my son, the girl is… well, she's my granddaughter."

The young man shot his eyes at Snow. "Grand... daughter?"

"Long story." The happy mother smiled as she handed him a fifty.

The teller pointed a finger at her. "Wait… are you… Princess Snow?"

Snow gasped, starting to really feel the need to get the hell out of there with the two little ones, but she once again responded with a smile. "Well… yes, yes I am."

"WOW! Hey, Jodie!" he called for the teller in front of him. "Look! We have a royal shopping with us!"

Jodie turned around and fangirled, almost as if she were looking at some pop idol. "Oh, my God! Snow White!" she turned completely to the royal. "And you have your kids with you! How awesome is that!?" She produced a phone and suddenly snapped a selfie with a very befuddled Snow. "Your highness, I just wanna say… I rooted for you ALL along before the first curse, ok? You're like… wow, Like all I ever wanted to be in life! And oh!" she gasped. "Prince Charming is sooooo hot! You're so lucky!"

"I… well, I…"

"Can you just… let me like… hug you?"

"Well…"

"Ugh!" The girl hugged Snow. "You've no idea what that means to me, highness, I just… I can't even! And your kids are so, so cute! This must be prince Neal, but… Oh wait! You had another one?"

"I.. I…"

"Jodie, get this!" The young boy smiled. "Remember we read about how princess Emma grew up while we were all cursed? That other kid is the one she had with Captain Hook!"

"OOOHHH NO WAY!" Jodie squealed. "That's little Lilly Hook!"

Snow began to feel something simmer in the pit of her stomach.

"He is so damn hot too! Oh my god!" She grabbed both of Snow's hands. "Do you ever like, talk to Emma about him? Like, what's it like to kiss Captain Hook? Oh, my god, he's such a rock star! Come on, you must have at LEAST wondered! Oh, my god!"

That mild feeling in her stomach had gone from simmer to sizzle.

"Oh, look at the little Hookie!" Jodie went down to the floor and began to touch Lilly's cheek. "Ooooh look at yoooou you're so cuuuute!"

Lilly sneered and turned to look at Snow. "Nonnie?"

"Ooooh she calls you Nonnie! That's just beyond cute!" The girl then turned to little Neal. "And you! God, look at youuuuu, so adorable, you look like prince Charming soo soo much, and that is such a good thing!"

Snow gasped, wide eyed. The feeling had gone from sizzle to boil.

"Oh, no no no, I didn't mean it like that I mean, you are, ugh, I mean you REALLY are like, the fairest of them all! I mean you did put on a little weight, sure, but hey, who doesn't whale up when pregnant, right?" She jumped up and down. "Oh! Oh let me have a selfie with your kids!"

Snow suddenly threw her arms in the air. "STOOOP shouting stupidities!" she hollered, making the girl stop dead in her tracks. "SHUT UP! No, you may NOT have a picture of the kids, you do NOT get to poke their cheeks and you do NOT get to say another single fucking thing! Neal is my son, Lilly is my granddaughter, NO, I never wondered what it's like to kiss Hook, No he is NOT a rock star, he is actually a pirate! Yes, Lilly calls me Nonnie and HELL yes, my husband is hot but you don't stand a chance in HELL! Now let me pay for my groceries and let me get the hell away from here! NOW!"

The tellers silently went back to their tills and after the young man sheepishly handed Snow her change, the princess smiled kindly at him. "Thank you…" she looked at his name tag. "Peter Rabbit. Have a lovely day!"

She walked out, smiling merrily as the tellers looked at her with wry, sheepish glares.

As she tried to handle shopping, kids and stroller, she was suddenly drawn by a voice.

"Well, seems the Snow finally reached a melting point."

Snow turned and found Regina. She heaved.

"I know, poor kids, I feel so bad…"

"Don't." The former Mayor shook her head. "They crossed the line. To be perfectly honest…" She reached down and helped Snow fold the stroller and placed it in the trunk. "…I would have probably done something harsh."

"Yeah, like turn them into wood." Snow smiled.

Regina laughed. "No, I was thinking maybe turn them both into mice for a week, to teach them a lesson on meekness before royalty."

"Ugh, don't be so smug." Snow giggled. "TBesides, I'm pretty sure one of them was a rabbit back in our world, so it wouldn't do much good." She looked at regina and smiled. "Thanks for the help."

"I just wish someone had lent me a hand when henry was that big." She looked around her. "And where's the rest of your posse? Did the Charmings go out on yet another quest without their tracker?"

Snow shrugged. "I suppose someone has to look after them." She sighed and looked at Lilly, who had climbed in and was grinning at both women from the back seat. "Especially that one. Neal never leaves my side, but Lilly?" Snow sighed. "She's sort of… targeted, I think."

Regina grinned and peeked through the hatchback to look at the little girl. "Well, hello there Lilly! You're so big!"

"Say hi to Regina, sweetheart!" Snow grinned.

"Hi, Gina!" She wrinkled her nose and waved.

Regina smiled and shook her head. "I gotta say, for a foster girl and a pirate, that kid is damn cute."

Snow nodded. "Yeah, well, I suppose that's one of the reasons someone's got to keep an eye on her. She may be smarter than all of us put together, but… she can't control her magic and she seems to be somewhat important in finding and defeating this… new witch."

Regina nodded. "The next time you want to go with them, I can take care of the kids."

Snow frowned. "Y… you'd do that?"

"Snow…" Regina looked to the floor. "I may not have a lot to be proud of about my past, but… I'd like to think I'll have more to be proud of in the future, so yeah. Besides, I have Henry to help out and I have magic, so they should all be well cared for."

Snow grinned and nodded. "well, I'll definitely take you up on that one, next time! Thank you."

Regina sighed. "Listen, before you go, why don't we get some ice cream?" She shrugged. "I made some turnovers today and Henry says they're always better with vanilla and caramel fudge ice cream on the side, so…"

"Oh sure! Hey Lilly, you want some ice cream?" She looked at Regina. "Emma would kill me if she knew…"

"What she doesn't know won't kill her." Regina cackled. Come on! My treat."

As soon as they reached the parlor, Lilly began to pull on Snow's hand, whimpering.

"What's the matter sweetie?"

Regina pushed past the door with little Neal in her arms and trned back when she saw Snow had halted. "Everything okay?"

"She's…scared, I think."

Regina raised an eyebrow. She had seen enough of the little girl's magic work to know that if she feared something, it meant that there was something bad to be feared.

"Can I help you?" Came the kind voice from the lady in the parlor.

As soon as she made her appearance, Lilly all but froze and stared at her in the eye.

"Yes. I've come to…purchase some ice cream." Regina spoke coldly.

The parlor lady stared back at Lilly till a smile broke the icy cold glare she and the child exchanged. "Why yes, madam Mayor…"

"Ex… madam mayor." Regina corrected.

"My apologies. I am stuck in here all day every day, I don't keep up with the local events." The kind blond lady replied. "What flavor will it be?"

"Vanilla."

"A cone?"

"A pint."

"Coming right up. And what of the princess?" she turned to Snow with a smile. "Or, both of them, rather?"

Lilly was shaking. Snow crouched down and looked at her, placing a hand on her forehead. "What's the matter?" She whispered.

"Bad." Lilly was able to muster.

Snow glanced at Regina and Regina glanced at the Snow Queen, now fully unraveled in her white gown.

"Busted." She grinned softly. "And… Good. Because at least now I know who the healer is. Hear me out, little one. You… will NOT defeat me."

And she aimed her hand at Lilly as a powerful streak of ice flew straight at the little girl.

Regina jumped and turned her back to protect Neal and took the full blow, saving Lilly.

"REGINA!" Snow shouted.

When she looked back up, the woman was gone… And Regina was shuddering cold.

Snow ran and grabbed Henry from her. "Regina, what was that?"

"C… Call Henry. Get me home." She looked into Snow's eyes. "Tell Emma t…to take my h… heart before the night falls." Having said this, she fell to the ground.

Snow ran outside and screamed for help.

She was no longer able to fend with two children, groceries and a frozen stepmother on her own.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Bloody hell, what happened?" Hook exclaimed as he made his way into the Mayor's office, followed by Emma, who made a beeline for her daughter.

"I think we know who the Snow Queen is." Snow nodded.

"Yeah…" Emma said as she picked up her daughter and kissed her cheek. "The ice cream lady. We saw her in the woods. Damn near killed Killian and my dad."

David looked at Regina as she lay unconscious on her couch. "What the hell happened to her?"

Snow shook her head. "We… didn't know the lady from the ice cream parlor was… her. She was helping me with Neal and… I accompanied her to buy ice cream for her turn overs." Snow swallowed hard. "She got hit by her magic." She turned a sorrowful look to Emma and Hook. "She took the blast… for Lilly. She wanted to hit Lilly."

Lilly nodded. "Bad bad bad." She said as she hid her face in the hollow of her mother's neck.

"Yeah, baby, she's bad." Emma placed her hand on her daughter's back.

Henry sighed from the back. "I asked her… to buy the ice cream." He shook his head. "I'm supposed to be a seer and… this is all because I asked her to…"

Elsa paced to the young man. "You had no way of knowing." She put both hands on his shoulders.

Emma handed Lilly over to Hook and walked to her son. "Come on, kid…" she hugged him. "We'll find a way to get her unfrozen." She looked at Elsa. "Any idea what we can do?"

Elsa shrugged. "The only way to thaw a frozen heart… is through an act of pure love."

Henry smiled. "True love's kiss! If I kiss her forehead, it should work! Right?"

Elsa shook her head. "It's… not quite so simple. It has to be an actual action. What she did, that selfless act of taking the hit for your sister? Something like that."

Henry shook his head. "Well if she did it… why is she frozen?"

"I… don't know." Elsa swallowed both saliva and a batch of tears. "I really wish I did. Her magic is similar to mine, but… this I don't know at all."

"I know who will…" Killian hissed. "I'll talk to the crocodile." He looked at Lilly and grinned. "Angel, you want to go with mummy for a bit? I've got to do an errand."

Lilly shook her head. "No no no…"

"Sweet pea…"

"DOWN!" she insisted.

Killian huffed and placed the child on the floor.

Lilly paced silently to Regina, and didn't seem the slightest bit scared or peeved by the Queen's frozen appearance. She touched Regina's cheek and grinned. "Gina good."

She then turned to Emma. "Mommy?"

Emma was by her daughter in an instant. "Yes honey?"

"This…" Lilly pointed at Regina's chest.

"Wh… what do you mean, Lilly?"

"Oh!" snow quipped in. "Emma! Regina said to tell you to take her heart before the end of the day!"

"Wait, WHAT?" Emma sneered.

"This, mommy!" Lilly kept pointing at Regina's chest.

Emma turned her gaze at everyone in the room. "But… I've never… done this before! I don't know… I…"

"Darling…" Hook was suddenly beside her. "It's not so difficult. Just, put your hand through her chest, hard, grab the heart and pull it out."

She looked at him with a sneer. "How the hell do you know about that?"

He side grinned. "Aurora?" he chuckled. "Regina herself sort of… taught me. It was just about the only bit of magic I learned."

"Well you know how to do it, Killian, YOU do it!"

"NO!" Lilly shook her head. "YOU!"

Emma heaved. "It HAS to be me, Lilly? Really?"

"Aye!"

Emma knew her daughter probably meant to say a lot more but was unable to without her cubes.

Lilly paced to her and put both her little hands on Emma's cheek. "Mommy..."

Emma sighed. "Ok… Ok I will try." She gulped.

"You can do this, sweetheart." David chimed.

"I… hope you're right… dad." Emma swallowed hard, focused and sighed. "Here's nothing."

She reached hard through Regina's chest and felt the coldness surround her hand… and just beneath her palm, a still warm and beating heart. Without thinking much, she grabbed it and pulled it out.

Everyone sighed with smiles of relief. The heart looked healthy and pumping warm in Emma's hand. "Ok, this is… kind of …gross."

Lilly nodded. "Mommy good!"

"Aye, little love, she is!" Killian smiled.

"Now what?" Henry shrugged.

Emma nodded. "I suppose that while the cold doesn't touch her heart… she will be alive. "

"Smart move." David nodded.

Killian stood and tried to pry Lilly away, but the little girl yanked her hand away from her father before smiling at him. "No, no."

She turned to Regina and sighed a baby sigh before placing a little finger right where her heart should be.

And slowly, Regina unfroze.

As she did, everyone gasped in admiration.

"This is why she aimed for the child." Elsa spoke softly as Regina suddenly gasped for air. "As long as she is here, she can undo whatever she does. She cannot defeat Lilly…"

"Unless she eliminates her." Snow sighed.

Killian caressed his daughter's head and the little girl turned to hug his neck. Killian's smile disappeared. "Lilly, darling, you're cold…."

Emma touched her back as she looked at Regina. "Welcome back."

"Thank you miss Swan… If you don't mind…" Regina held her hand out. Emma returned her heart to her and Regina placed it squarely back in her chest before turning to Lilly with a smile. "You saved me, Lilly. You're a special little girl, you know that?"

Shivering slightly, Lilly grinned at Regina as both Emma and Hook turned a worried scowl to her.

Regina sighed and nodded a thank you to Henry who placed a blanket over her shoulders. "We have top get rid of this icy bitch quickly." She shook her head and looked at Emma. "Lilly can heal anything… but all damage caused by ice magic is taking a toll on her."

Hook looked at Emma. "The bullet wound. She was perfectly fine when she cured me.."

"And my miscarriage…" Emma concurred.

Regina nodded. "Those were not related to magic. Healing magic takes up a lot of energy. Gold can tell you. Even if Lilly is powerful she's… still young. She knows how to heal, but her energy is just as limited as her age." She looked at Lilly and touched her head as the little girl slowly recovered from the shivers. "God knows how much she'll be able to take before it's too much for her."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Twenty-eight years earlier.

"She's not… what we thought she'd be." The woman sighed as she handed the crying three year old Emma back to Mrs. Bailey. "And my husband and I…. we're to have one of our own." She smiled. "Emma is a good child… but… just not ours."

The matronly home keeper stared daggers at the woman. "You have no heart."

"Mamaaa!" wailed three-year-old Emma Swan, reaching out for her mom… or her adoptive mom… or her ex-mom.

The woman caressed the child's face coldly. "I'm sorry, little one. But you are not the one. You shall find a good home, you will see. You are a special little girl."

With this, she turned around, ignoring the wails and cries of the little blonde toddler who saw as the only person she'd known to be her mother coldly walked away, stepping into the car beside her husband.

"I take it the homeowner didn't take it too well…"

She smiled. "She said I have no heart." She touched her bulging stomach. "But she's wrong. I have two, for now…" She smiled at her husband as he drove off. "Emma will be fine. Trust me. I know."

"Not worried in the least. She was… weird. Every time I tried to watch the game and she wanted to play with me the TV would act up." He chuckled. "She could be a little monster, for all you know…."

The woman turned a sudden stare to the man beside her. "A monster?" She smiled coldly. "Now that's very… cold of you."

They hit a red light.

"Well, honey, she was a weird little girl, even you said she was like… a little witch. Sorry. I don't want any freaks or weirdoes in my family."

She looked at him and grinned. "True. Me neither." She grabbed him by the wrist.

He didn't even have time to scream before he was frozen solid.

The woman smiled and stepped out of the car, caressing her stomach. "My little Elsa… this is what ordinary people call us. Monsters, weirdoes, freaks… But not us, my dear." She looked in the direction of the home where Emma had been left behind. "We'd best keep an eye on her. She was almost your big sister. But her magic will never be as mighty as ours. Never."

And with a flick of her wrist, she disappeared from the spot.


	30. The Day of Disclosure

The night was like many nights he'd enjoyed on the Jolly Roger, except now he had no bobbing vessel beneath his feet.

Emma was asleep in her bed and, miraculously, little Lilly hadn't risen with his own nightmares.

It had just been him this time.

He stood in the balcony of the bedroom, feeling the midnight air hit his face and he reminisced many a peaceful night, the crew dormant below deck as he sat on the crow's nest, alone, a tapestry of silver stars adorning a black night.

It took Killian maybe six waking nightmares to realize that the stars in this realm were really not that different from those in the enchanted forest; They were actually the same, only… seen as if he were looking at them through a mirror.

He grinned at the memory of that particular realization; even in parallel words, he and Swan had been meant to be.

He sighed, once the midnight sky had eased the pain of the horrors of his negative memories, and returned to the room. He was met by the sight of Emma as she stepped out of the bathroom, turning off the light.

"All right there, Swan?" he spoke softly.

"Hmm…" She swallowed. "Did you eat… the shrimp today, as well?"

"Of course."

She huffed as she got into bed. "Well, the ones I ate? They just decided to go back to the sea… via the gutter."

Killian got behind her, a lilting chuckle leaving his lips, as he spooned her in his arms, kissing her head. "That's… quite colorful, Savior."

She grinned. "Just thought you should know."

"Aye, well if you're still ailed by sundown, we'll talk about taking you to the medic."

He could hear her smile. Only he ever could. She nested herself in his embrace and he held her to him, spooning her as he sighed.

"Bad dream again?" she whispered a minute later.

"Aye."

"Lilly stayed in bed."

"And for that, I am relieved." He huffed. "This dream wasn't scary, love… It was just…. Sad. Shameful."

She turned her face to him. "What was it this time?"

He licked his lips. "A young maiden from the Black Lakes. Red hair, innocent, naïve… I wronged her. In the worst manner." He shrugged. "I seduced her, took me days…. Promised her the world. And once I got my way…" He winced. "Bloody hell, that poor, young lass…"

Emma looked into his eyes. "Please don't tell me she had your baby or something like that."

"No, she did not. But…" He sighed, a regretful scorn on his brow. "Her family disregarded her, sent her to live in the streets. She was shunned by her village folk, they called her an "easy harlot". She died of starvation, three years later. I learned of this through the kindly dock master who buried her remains." The scorn on his face reflected sheer self-loathing. "That… that wasn't me. That wasn't who I set out to be as a young lad. Bloody hell, Emma." He looked into her eyes. "Why do you even..?"

"Let's… not go there." She placed a hand on his mouth. "You got lost. Now you're found. There." She turned her body completely to him. "And if you wanna know why, well, because of the look in your face right now. That scorn? It's regret. The man I know is capable of having enough compassion to actually feel regret." She caressed his cheek. "And I really love that guy."

He sighed deep and a soft smile shone through his grimace. "I love you too."

Emma reached and pulled his left hand to her lips, kissing his knuckles. "This troublesome little pirate hand is shaping out to be quite the mentor."

"Aye. The kind of mentor that wallops his students." She smiled at her. "But I suppose some students do deserve a walloping."

Emma looked into his eyes: Even in the darkness, the cobalt blue of his irises was noticeable, like some faint glow in the night sky. "Listen… why don't you do something for someone? Say, some young woman here in Storybrooke?" she rubbed his shoulder. "We can find maybe a girl who's lost her way and you can sort of… help her get back on her feet. That way you'll make peace with the memory of that poor girl."

He swallowed and nodded. "Sounds good."

"Killian…" She swallowed the nauseating, coiny flavor that had started to once again take over her mouth. "Why did Gold really give you the hand?"

Killian thought for a minute. "He… asked me for something in exchange… now, now!" He interrupted as soon as he felt Emma was about to react to that particular part of his story. "His deal was for us to allow him to protect Lilly… from the witch." Emma settled back down. "I think he finds Lilly as amazing as the rest of us do, and let's be honest, darling, being protected by the Dark One doesn't hurt." He touched her shoulder. "Besides, he did say I'd be needing both hands for what was about to unfold…"

"Ugh… why does life in this stupid town ALWAYS get so friggin' ominous?" She sat up in bed and covered her lips, belching softly… and then retching not so softly, before she suddenly bolted to the toilet.

Killian sat up in bed and frowned as he heard his wife disgorging in the bathroom. When she returned, she looked even paler than before.

"That's that, love." He said as he turned on the light and got out of bed "We see Whale as soon as the sun is up."

"Fine." She swallowed as she lay down again. "Ugh. Damn shrimp…."

He put on his sweat pants. "I'll just bring you some iced water, darling. It should help the queasiness."

As he silently paced out the door of his room he ran a hand down his face, reaching the bar and helping himself to a glass from the top shelf. As he opened the tap and filled it, his eyes gazed blankly out the window at the image of a woman. Of THAT woman.

The Snow Queen.

He stared in silence as she walked by the street below, on her way to the beach, leaving a trail of thick ice. Like a slug, he thought as he observed her, wondering if perhaps it would be wise to waken Emma; but her sickly state made him think twice and he simply observed her as she passed by and suddenly disappeared.

He frowned and huffed… and a vapory trail left his lips. The temperature had dropped considerably. Suddenly, a loud squeal made him drop the glass on the floor, and both he and Emma ran to Lilly's room.

The child sat up on her bed, crying hard… the window was covered in frost and icy tendrils ran along the rails of her cot. Both parents looked at the window and saw the beauteous Queen standing in the balcony, looking in and staring at both of them coldly.

"NO!" he shouted as he suddenly held his left hand out. He saw the queen fly off, almost as if he had pushed her himself… and she was gone. Killian ran back to Lilly picked her up and held her hard as Emma opened the window and shouted. "WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU!? LEAVE MY DAUGHTER ALONE!"

There was no answer, except for a dog barking in a distance and the sound of the waves at the beach.

Lilly sobbed and screamed into her father's shoulder as he rocked her gently. "There, there, my love, she's gone. She'll never hurt you. We're here. Shhh…" He looked helplessly up at Emma. "I saw her. She was just… walking down the street and then she just… disappeared…"

"…and reappeared in our daughter's window." Emma huffed as she closed the window and curtains. " She found us, Killian, what are we going to do?"

Lilly was starting to settle. Killian looked at his left hand. "Emma… I'm… not quite sure but…" he looked up at her. "I think there's more to this hand than Gold let on."

Emma nodded. "You pushed her away. I saw it."

He stared at it. "I've magic in my hand?"

Emma grabbed his hand and looked at it. "Maybe you do." She looked up at him. "Maybe that's Gold's way of protecting Lilly." She reached out and took the little girl from her husband. "Honey, you want to sleep with mom and dad tonight?"

A sobbing baby girl nodded and said "Aye." Amidst her tears, she and her parents shared the big bed in the master room, and a few minutes later, she was once again asleep.

But Emma and Hook didn't get to rest that night. The visitation to the Doctor would wait; they'd go see Gold first thing.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

As Lilly and Neal played in a pen, the family and wizards all held a meeting at Emma and Hook's apartment.

"She can freeze people." Regina stated bluntly. "From the heart. I was lucky. I had my back to her to protect the prince; if I hadn't…"

"The troll rocks are love experts…" Elsa quipped as she nodded in Regina's direction. "They said that, If one gets hit anywhere else in the body, there are plenty of chances to survive. It's getting hit in the heart that you have to watch out for." She sighed and sat down. "I almost lost my sister that way. I hit her by accident." She cringed at the memory. "She froze to solid ice right before my eyes."

"How did you break the spell?" Emma frowned. "You said that a mere kiss won't do the trick."

Elsa smiled. "When Anna froze, she did so as she saved my life… from the blade of Prince Hans. An act of pure love, an act of sacrifice, is the one thing that can thaw a frozen heart. So, she kind of… unfroze herself."

Killian scratched his head. "So after all this… that cowardly Prince still rose to the throne AND wed your sister."

"Yes." Elsa nodded. "He went to Her. Asked for her help."

Charming approached Elsa. "By "her", you mean the Snow Queen."

"Yes. That's when Arendelle froze. The kingdom blamed me and Hans threatened to expose me to the crowd if I didn't… go into the urn. They would have lynched me."

"What do you remember of that era, Hook?" Regina asked.

Killian shrugged. "Only… five years of winter. I was still young, a cadet at the academy. But indeed, all blamed Queen Elsa and when Hans became king and the winter ended, all of us regarded him a hero and a man of honor." He shook his head. "Nothing further from the truth."

"What I want to know is why the HELL it had to be my daughter who turned out to be the one person that can stop her!" Emma asked, unnerved. "Not three days ago she was at our goddamed window and scared the living crap out of all of us!"

"That, dearie, is because every dark wizard has an opposing party." Rumple replied. "It is only logical that it had to be a product of the purest love twice over and the descendant of an Arendellian nobleman."

Killian guffawed and smiled with a frown. "Nobleman? Mate, my father was a pirate, like me. My mother was a bar wench, victim to his lust and she died birthing me. Trust me, there's as much nobleman's blood in my veins as there would be in a pig's." He turned and shrugged to Snow and David. "Sorry about that, mates…"

Elsa turned to him. "Your father… What was his name?"

Killian huffed. He really hatred discussing that particular topic. "Must I give that filthy scoundrel the honor of remembrance?"

"Yes." Gold nodded. "Speak his name, captain."

Killian heaved and sat down, shaking his head. "Davy Jones."

That got a collective gasp from all, except Emma, who had heard the story of his abandonment and the two years he lived in the Flying Dutchman.

"The, Davy Jones?" Regina sneered.

"Yes. Alas…" He smiled a cold grin to her. "I'm only too pleased to know I look nothing like the bastard…"

"Lord Commodore Jones!" Elsa gasped.

Killian's eyes shot up at hers. "Commodore?"

Elsa paced to Killian with an enthusiastic nod. "He was my father's most trusted ally… and the naval leader of the entire fleet. Two hundred vessels were under his command. He… turned rogue after the ship he sailed my parents in was lost at sea and the viceroy blamed him for the mishap. He was the sole survivor, the one who told us all of how the ship sank. He was blamed… cursed for the demise of the king and queen. Anna and I were young still. It was I… who condemned your father when after five years his personal vessel attacked port and sank fifty of the vessels that had once been under his surveillance. His ship was a cursed ship… a ship with purple sails."

Killian closed his eyes and hung his head. "The Dutchman."

"Yes. A personal gift form the king himself, when he was still his trusted friend." She looked down. "An evil curse was set on the ship… and he sailed in it until his demise. It is said that all who challenge the memory of Davy Jones… are sucked deep into the ocean and never found."

"So… before all that, the guy had a title?" David placed his hands on his hips.

Elsa nodded. "Probably was just as young as Captain Jones is now." She grinned. "He was Lord Commodore David Jones."

"Hence… a Nobleman" Rumple grinned.

Emma paced to Killian and placed a hand on his shoulder as the pirate shook his head and spoke through gritted teeth. "And who cursed him?"

Rumple stood up. "The dark one that preceded me."

Killian rose his eyes to Rumple and swallowed. "And thus… My beloved daughter Lilly becomes the perfect target: A cursed girl… from a cursed lineage." He stood up and stomped out of the room.

Emma heaved but didn't follow.

Rumple looked at her. "Now you see dearie… why it is he needs both hands."

The savior shook her head. "You did something to it. Some magic…"

"Nay. It was always there. Your pirate was conceived once the Jones man was already a condemned soul. Thus he has a small amount of magic, magic which you, miss Swan, have drawn your own power from." He paced to her. "Your child, miss Swan, is the result of years of magical perfectioning. She is the sole possessor of the perfect balance between good and evil, absolutely unique, like no other being. You are the child born of the purest love, he is the son of an unjustly cursed man from the land where all this mess began... you conceived a little one together... what did you expect would occur?"

"Why does the Queen want to finish her off?" Snow shook her head.

Rumple huffed and sat back. "The Snow Queen's power was given to her by the same Dark One who cursed the Flying Dutchman… in exchange for his gift, she promised him a child. But she was so cold, that she was unable to conceive. She needed some… child to raise, to warm her heart." he looked to Regina. "You are familiar with this, Dearie: It was the reason you adopted young Henry in the first place: To fill the void in your heart." He continued pacing around. "Children and especially babies have uncanny magic, the very innocence Zelena tried to steal from young Lilly... a healing, powerful thing. So she searched for a child who would warm her heart, enough for her to carry a child within her. But this magic was so strong and so bizarre, it had to be a special child, a child with a love so unique, no other child could have such an effect. She found such child, in this very realm. And this child's power, kindness and love had almost completely warmed her soul for good… when she was finally able to conceive from a random mortal. Then, all that warmth dissipated from her soul once more." He turned to look at Emma. "And then, she callously returned the infant girl back to the home she had found her in."

Emma's blood froze solid. "Wait… what?" She whispered, pained.

Snow stood up. "Are you saying… that the people that took Emma in as a little baby and kept her for three years… The Swans… They were… ?"

Rumple sighed. "Indeed. It was all according to plan. This is why, this woman has been around this town for as long as Miss swan has. She was followed… chased by this entity… because she knew she would grow to be a force to be reckoned with."

Emma's eyes were filled with tears. "Th… that's why she knows me."

"Yes, dearie. She knew it would be you, your Arendellian love… and your child who would be the ones to stop her plans."

Emma swallowed the tears."Wait, this doesn't make any sense! We're talking shit that went down when Killian was still in Arendelle, and that was like three hundred years ago! How can this woman do this and suddenly be here and adopt me and then go back and..."

Regina cut in with a sigh. "Emma... you should know by now. Time is very relative when you travel from realm to realm."

the young savior cradled her forehead with both hands.

"And… what became of the baby she was having?" Emma was able to ask, her voice broken.

Gold sighed and simply turned to look at Elsa. "She's right there."

All heads turned to Elsa. "What?" She smiled. "N… no! No no, my parents were the King and the Queen! She was the sister to my mother, my aunt!"

"Aaaand there we go, back in time again..." Emma huffed and paced.

Gold paced to her. "My dear Elsa…" He grinned. "Your mother is a cursed, evil woman, who wanted revenge from her sister, her blood sister, more than anything. Your parents raised you away from her, to try and break your magic away. They took you away from her. When they saw you had inherited all her power, your mother decided to raise you as her own. Anna was born shortly after you were in their care. The queen recurred to the Dark One once more, told him that the child she had promised him was under the care of the King and Queen of Arendelle… so as they searched for a cure for you, he cast a spell that created a massive storm that sunk your parents into the ocean. Davy Jones tried to declare against him, but the Dark One was cunning. He managed to make Jones's story to seem like treason, so he and his ship were cursed. But the dark One always lies, dearies…. He betrayed the queen and encased her in the urn… to keep control of the child's magic. But… when you became queen dearie, I took control of the dagger and the powers of the Dark One… so you were left alone. Now, you do remember Prince Hans and how he was defeated… he liberated the queen, established a truce… and he placed you in that urn, banished your sister's rugged fiancée and wed her, becoming king under the frozen spell. As you resided in that urn, the queen waited for your liberation… and kept close vigil on Miss Swan." He chuckled. "She hesitated when Henry was born, but the father's blood… my son's, did not match, so Henry was left alone. Lilly, on the other hand…" He looked at all of them. "Is the Healer. The one that can and will vanquish her, if, of course, she doesn't get to the little one first. Through Lilly, you shall return to power, Majesty. And no foe shall ever try to take over any town where she resides or establishes a truce with. And as for me..." He looked to Emma. "Let's say, she is rather sore with the Dark One who betrayed her. She won't hesitate in attempting to avenge the treason the previous Dark One played on her." He shrugged. "I am not overly keen on that particular brand of magic; it is power that even I am not familiar with. This is why it is imperative to keep the little Jones girl safe."

There was a long silence; far too many buried truths had been suddenly disclosed.

Emma and Elsa exchanged a teary-eyed glance and Emma walked to Lilly, taking her from her pen. "I have to find Killian."

She left the room and sure enough, found her pirate love staring at the water by the harbor.

She stood by him and he turned to look at Lilly, who grinned and held her arms out for him to hold her. "Come here, love…" he whispered, a mild grin on his face as he took her with one hand and wrapped his arm around Emma's shoulders. "So finally the truth is known…"

"And how…" Emma sighed.

Killian looked at her. "You have something to share there, Swan?"

"Yeah…" She grinned with fake non-chalance. "Turns out the Snow Queen was my adoptive mother and Elsa's biological mother who has hunted me her whole life because she knew I could potentially become the mother of the child that would send her ass back into the ice age. Oh! And..." She allowed a couple of tears to roll down her cheeks. "Seems you might not be as old as we all thought you were. Or maybe you're a lot older. Who knows..." She sniffed and looked into the ocean. "This is a gothic relativity nightmare starring the Snow Queen and Einstein."

As tears slid down her face. Killian squeezed her to him.

"Well, I don't know who this Einstein chap is, but it so happens I've noble blood…"

"We're a melting pot." She chuckled.

"Well, at least your parents will be pleased." He chuckled back. "I'm the bastard son of a nobleman; I might just be blue-blooded enough for their princess, after all."

"They couldn't care less about that, you know it."

"Aye, my love, but it seems that if I don't take this unholy mess with some humorous irony, both of us might explode into hysterics"

Emma laughed and wrapped her arms around his waist. "Poor Elsa."

"So Swan, darling…" dodging his head around while Lilly tried stick her finger in his ear. "What do we do now?"

Emma sighed deep and nodded. "Pizza."

"Come again, love?" He frowned.

"I'm starving." She pulled him.

"The bloody world's about to end and you're thinking of feeding?"

She smiled at him and pulled him by the hand. "Yep. Might as well. And after that…" She grinned, devilishly "I have 'Captain On The Sheets' in mind for dessert."

He laughed. "You are insane woman."

"Killian..." She looked into his eyes. "She will NOT finish our lives, she will NOT disrupt our happiness." Emma shook her head. "Now come on. I swear I really, really am starving…"

"You were still ill earlier today, love, are you quite sure Pizza is a good idea?" He side-sneered.

"PIZZAAAAA!" Lilly shouted with a smile.

"There!" Emma grinned playfully. Both the Healer and The Savior seem to agree, now, Captain… let's get pizza!"

He laughed again. "Very well… I can never deny my loves what they desire… But we should keep the dessert at bay till the dusk love."


	31. Purple sails

The seventeen-year-old Emma Swan, inmate number 2785, probably the prettiest in the west block, had been ill one too many times that week. Her cellmate had actually asked to be changed to another cell to escape Emma's miserable retching, which didn't stop for weeks, and weeks. She lost maybe a whole stone during those five weeks.

And then the medic told her: she was pregnant.

Pregnant. P-R-E-G-N-A-N-T.

And only seventeen.

She never even finished high school, had close to no chances of finding a decent job (lack of schooling and now a criminal record) and would very probably be one of those girls who would wind up living on welfare from the state.

Then there was Neal. Neal, the creep who had swept her off her feet, taken her from A to B and then set her up to go down for a crime she didn't even commit. And, he was the father…

And she sort of still didn't believe he had done such a thing, but now, one month and two weeks into her sentence of eleven months, she learned she didn't only carry his burden of guild and rap sheet… but his child as well.

Nice of him, to leave the car for when she finished the sentence. His sentence.

Asshole.

Emma tried to think of being pregnant as maybe having a flu or some allergic reaction. Then when her belly finally started to pop and the prison medic prescribed her with plenty of vitamin pills to help the baby along, she convinced herself that the pills were a remedy.

On her eighteenth week all that went to hell when the baby moved. And he didn't stop moving at all, it seemed, after that. That was when she had a reality check.

Baby. She was going to be a mom. But she couldn't be a mom.

Not because she wouldn't want to… every second that passed where she felt her child move, was another second she fell in love with it. And it was that exact reason that drove her to decide what she had already decided: He deserved a strong, reliable family that would clothe him, feed him and shelter him, that would have enough money for his medical bills, school uniforms and Christmas presents.

To have all that she had never had.

Then, one day…. The baby came. There was a blackout in the medical wing when the little boy left her body and screamed to life… and the pain of her decision weighed heavier than an anvilee in her heart as she turned her face away from the smiling doctor who was kindly telling her that she could change her mind.

She shook her head, tears running down her eyes, knowing that if she as much as saw a little hand or a little foot, she'd never let go… and she'd ruin his chances.

So she let him go. And as the baby's screams faded down the hall, it was Emma's pained holler that took its place.

She sat for an hour on the corner of her bed, with the test in her hand, remembering every terrible second of that birthday, her eighteenth, when Henry was born.

The little Clearblue stick read it out clearly: Pregnant.

She certainly was not that scrawny seventeen year old girl who had found out she was to be a mom in jail; she'd come a long way. She was now a reputable sheriff. She mothered two kids, including the one she had given up, had married a very handsome sea Captain and… oh yeah, she was the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming. That was always "wait what" thing for her.

But the memory of Henry dwelled… and little Nicholas too. The tiny one her Killian had kindly given a decent grave to while she was still recovering from her very tragic miscarriage.

She'd had Lilly without knowing all the power contained in the particular mix she and Killian represented; as far as she had known then, she was the child of a Bail Bonds Person and a Little League coach, as ordinary a life as one could ask for. But recent events had shown her that begetting children with Captain Hook was as far from ordinary as Storybrooke was from Tokio. Not to mention the unbelievable amount of craziness her entire life was. What if the Snow Queen got word? What if she was now unable to fight her? What if the baby affected her magical prowess and they'd all be helpless?

What if the pregnancy didn0t take and she once again lost the child?

She was scared out of her mind.

She stood up and washed her face with cold water before tossing the pregnancy test into the dust bin, readying herself for another day at the precinct. She had meant it when she had told Killian that this woman and her evil icy shenanigans would not disrupt their happy lives, but she certainly hadn0t counted on this one. Then again, she wasn't surprised.

"You should have told the guy about condoms…" she shook her head as she rinsed the soap from her face.

Lilly then rushed into her room in a bout of laughter, just as she was pulling the zipper of her boot up.

"Heyyy!" Emma smiled. "Good morning to you!"

"Hi!" Lilly waved her stuffed toy dog that 'Nonnie' had bought for her.

"So, today you get to visit your uncle Rumple!" She smiled. "He's going to take care of you today…"

Lilly turned her head sideways and pitter-pattered back to get her cubes. Even if she was learning words fast, the cubes were still the best way she could communicate.

She sat before Emma and dropped the bag-full of cubes at her feet.

"Really honey? Now? I have to work, and…"

"No no no!" She shook her head vehemently and set a word with the cubes.

SAD

"You are sad, sweetie?" Emma winced.

Lilly did an eye roll that was as Killian-ish as his accent. "No no. Mommy sad."

"Oh…" Emma smiled. "I'm not sad!"

Lilly squinted and looked into her mom's eyes and shook her head suddenly. "Lie."

"You… can tell I'm lying…" She closed her eyes and shook her head with a huff. "And you got that from me, for sure…." Emma sighed and ran a hand through her hair before pulling her daughter up on her lap. "I'm not sad honey. I'm… sacred. You know what sacred is?"

"Mh-hm…" Lilly nodded.

"Well, something happened and… Things are going to change, I think, for you and I and daddy… and Henry."

Lilly grinned and wiggled away from Emma's lap. She sat by her cubes.

BABY

She then moved the cubes again.

GOOD

Emma sighed. Even her two and a half year old daughter had a better head on her shoulders than she did. Lilly turned her face up at her and smiled, suddenly holding her arms open. "Mommy!"

Emma smiled and a tear rolled down her cheek as the little girl held her around the neck. And like it had never been there at all, her fears suddenly dissipated.

She was at it again.

Lilly laughed as Emma suddenly felt happiness, unbridled, uncontrolled and overflowing happiness, take over her. She stood and held her daughter by her little body, sinning her in circles, "WHOOOOO!", and the toddler laughed hysterically.

No other sound in the world was quite as beautiful as Lilly's laughter, she concluded that day.

"Well, mommy STILL has to go to work, Lilly!" She carried the little girl to the kitchen. "So, remember, you get to stay with Mr. Gold. He said he'd protect you from the bad lady, ok?"

The child raised one eyebrow as Emma sat her on the counter, and Emma laughed, thinking of all the times that Killian's funny little eyebrow quirks had passed unadvertised…. Or not. Not really. She had noticed them all.

And was rather happy Lilly had the same skill.

She paced back to her daughter and rubbed her brows with her thumbs. "Ugh, look at you, all these gorgeous, thick brows, just like your dad's. Breaks my hear to know that when you're sixteen you'll probably be screaming for tweezers…"

She fed Lilly breakfast (she had become a skilled cutlery user) and hummed as she sat herself down to eat her first healthy meal.

This baby would be fine. She knew it now. And nothing, not a damn thing, no witch, wizard, monster or curse, would be able to change that.

The sound of keys rustled through the gate as Killian let himself in, looking flustered.

He hurriedly kissed Lilly's head. "Angel… bon appetite…"

Emma frowned. "No… work today? What's going on?"

Killian huffed and after leaning in to kiss Emma's lips swiftly, he ran a hand through his hair. "You won't believe this, love…"

"What…" Emma cleaned her mouth and stood up.

He sighed and grinned a humorless grin. "The bloody sea is frozen."

She frowned. "What?"

"Look…" He dragged her to the window by her forearm and pointed to the direction of the sea. "See there?"

"Holy crap…" Emma frowned, before turning to Hook. "She froze the sea… why would she do that?" She turned back to the window and reached into her pocket for her radio. "Dad? We have a serious situation…"

Killian shucked off his jacket and sat next to his daughter as she ate a scrambled egg, occasionally taking little bits from the tip of her fork that she fed into his mouth.

"Really, Killian, how is she ever gonna grow if you keep chowing her breakfast?" Emma huffed humorously as she waited for a reply from her father. Killian looked at her from the table and his eyes smiled at her as he opened his mouth for yet another fork-full of Lilly's scrambled eggs.

"Copy that, Emma, what's going on?"

"Lilly, your dad's a big guy, stop giving him your breakfast…" Emma chuckled before speaking into the Walkie. "Well, Killian's just come home from work, because there's not much the dock master can do… if the sea is frozen solid."

"Wh… did you say frozen?"

"Yep. I'm looking at it."

"There will be a lot of phone calls."

"Stay with Elsa. People will want her head. Not everyone knows about the Snow Queen." She turned to look at Killian. "Do you suppose Gold would know why she…?"

"I don't think that even the crocodile, for all his knowledge, has much of an advantage over this particular sorcerer, love." Killian shrugged.

Flustered, Emma sat beside him in the kitchen table and turned to look at him. "You want something to eat?"

"Daddy!" Lilly offered Killian some more egg.

He laughed softly and shrugged. "I think I'm covered, swan."

"The hell." She smiled back at him and stood to scramble an egg for him. "Lilly, eat your eggs, please…"

"Well, darling, you know I appreciate your intentions, but you heard your mum, now… those are for you, my sweet."

"Mommy, mommy!" Lilly shouted excitedly.

"Yeah, honey, what is it?"

"MOMMMYYYY!"

"Lilly, stop shouting! Now, what?" Emma turned, slightly annoyed as she scrambled the eggs in a bowl.

"Mmmhh…" Lilly widened her eyes.

"Ohh.." Emma chuckled, nervously scrambling the eggs. "In a minute, sunshine, just let me get these done for your dad, ok?"

Killian frowned. "What does she want?"

Lilly started to giggle and to eat the eggs with her fingers, one eyebrow way up.

_Pushy as hell, Just like her father,_ Emma thought as she chuckled, pouring the scrambled eggs into the pan.

"You two are up to something…." Killian side-grinned and eyed them both suspiciously.

Emma served the eggs on a plate and turned to Killian. "Bacon? Ham? Hash brown?"

"Emma, love if I wanted to have a menu read out I'd head to Granny's. Now what is going on?"

Emma sighed and grabbed a slice of bread, put it on the dish atop the eggs and placed Killian's breakfast before him. "There you go."

She sat in front of him and Lilly stared at her face, eyes wide like dinner plates and a tight-lipped grin on her face. She softly banged her open palms on the tray of her baby chair and wiggled her feet back and forth.

Killian laughed. "Swan, why in heavens is our daughter so bloody anxious?"

Emma sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "Ok. Fine…" she addressed a wide-eyed look at the little girl, who just giggled. She then turned to look at Killian. "Something's happened."

His grin disappeared. "Oh, no…" he whispered. "Is Henry well? Did the Snow queen come here? Are you all right?"

Emma chuckled and swallowed. "No it's… nothing like that. It's just… things are going to change… a little bit." She reached out for his hands atop the table.

"How so?" He frowned as he felt her hands squeeze his.

Emma licked her lips. "Killian… I…"

"BABYYYYYYY!" Lilly screamed suddenly, before clamping her mouth with both hands, her eyes screaming excitement and mischief.

Emma huffed and turned to her. "Way to go, genius, you just spoiled the surprise!" She said with a smile.

"Mmm… sorry?" Lilly replied, and the expression on her face convinced Emma her whiz kid was much more pirate than princess, remembering the time Killian had 'apologized to Belle' on the doorstep of his room. An ironic sorry.

So much like him.

"Tatter-tale." Emma playfully stuck her tongue out to Lilly, before she looked to Killian again.

The man had frozen solid on the chair, his gaze fixed in Emma. She chuckled and shrugged. "Well, there you go. I'm…. pregnant."

It took Killian about ten seconds to remember that people have to breathe every now and then. And when he did, a soft and kindly smile came with his breath. "Darling… we're to have another child?"

"Looks that way."

With the huff that ensued came the full, ear-to-ear smile, his hands squeezing hers tight as he suddenly stood and pulled her to him for a swift kiss. "Bloody wonderful news!" He held her face with both hands. "Gods, Swan!"

"Happy, I see…"

"Over the bloody moon three times over!" He sat back down. "In times of woe, fair tidings such as this are what is needed to restore hope! Emma…" He stood up and walked to her, hugging her from behind. "I wasn't there, in your gravidity with our Lilly, but now… Now I get a chance!" He kissed her cheek and Emma chuckled as she leaned into his head. "Thank you, love…."

She held his hands with hers and then stood up so they could embrace properly. Both were so overcome with happy thoughts of their new one, they didn't see Lilly had suddenly fallen silent.

It wasn't until Killian pulled away that he noticed the steam leaving Emma's mouth.

He turned to Lilly and saw her just sitting there, paralyzed with fear, her gaze looking straight ahead.

As they both turned, they found her, the Snow Queen, standing in their living room, like some sort of ghost.

"Don0t stop on my account, by all means." She spoke softly. "Such a lovely little family. And many happy returns on your little… bundle of joy to be."

Killian stood before Lilly and Emma quickly drew her gun. "GET THE HELL OUT OF MY HOME!" She hollered.

"My, my, such manners!" The Queen said as she paced to her living room couch. "Believe me, I take no pleasure in being in this…" she looked around her in contempt. "…home, of yours any more than you do having me in it." She looked at Emma again. "I take it you've made peace with who I am by now…"

"Sarah Fischer-Swan." Emma nodded. "Classy woman. Adopted a girl and then gave her back."

"Oh… But I have protected and looked after you ever since, my dear." She shrugged. "It's a pity you… chose an ordinary drab old pirate to wed you. You could have found someone so much more… in your league." She looked to Killian. "Your dear father sends his regards… You must be little Killian."

Killian gritted his teeth. "You do not get to speak my given name, witch."

"What the hell do you want?" Emma barked.

The Icy lady stood up and paced. "Well, there's me wanting to get that little one out of commission…"

"NOT gonna happen!" Emma cocked the gun.

The Snow Queen laughed softly. "I know that, my dear. I bet you in all your wisdom, had no idea that while you are with child, your power triples."

"Well, it seems I have the higher ground. So get the hell out of here…"

"Not so soon." The woman grabbed the photograph of the three of them and Henry. She turned a beautiful and blood curdling grin to Emma. "My daughter is a queen by birthright, but she refuses me…" She placed the photograph down. "By sister in all her righteousness, thought I was so monstrous, I was undeserving of being a mother, so she took my little Elsa from me and placed me in that… ghastly urn."

"We know your story." Killian hissed. "But you have failed to answer the Savior: What the hell do you want with her?"

She grinned. "Oh… all will be revealed soon. Just so you know…" She looked in the direction of Emma's belly. "That little one comes with no special power. I can assume this will be a relief to you. You never really embraced your magic." She walked to the door, leaving a trail of ice behind her. "You are powerful, Emma. Much more than you imagine. But you keep bearing this… mortal offspring. So, I am here to offer you a deal." She looked at Lilly. "If you don't want me to finish her off, there's an option. I have knowledge of a certain… hat, a hat that draws magic from the wizard. It sits in an old home atop a hill, a house that came to be here without anyone claiming it, and is, as it happens…" She turned to Killian. "Your cursed father's."

Killian swallowed bile.

"If little Lilly here is rendered powerless, I will have no interest in… terminating her. She'll be just another irrelevant little mortal in my new Kingdom."

"Your… new kingdom?"

She smiled at Emma. "But of course. This realm has so much to offer, so many… airheaded mortals who are simply in dire need of a proper ruler." She wrinkled her nose. "And some snow. A lot more snow."

"You are insane." Killian shook his head.

"Oh, captain. Your father seemed to share that opinion. And we all now know what became of him, don't we?" she approached Killian, and he felt himself press his back closer against Lilly. "You share his eyes. Before he lost his way, he was a fair looking man. A very necessary pawn who took the fall and a curse for my deeds. How history repeats itself." She turned to look at Emma, heading for the door again. "I will give you three days to think this over. When the sea unfreezes, I will come. And if you have come to your senses and decided to cooperate, you will enjoy the little mortal life of your little one. If not… then whether or not you are with child, Emma… I WILL find a way to kill her."

"You'll have to kill me first!" Killian growled.

She laughed. "That… won0t be a difficult task, captain. Please consider my offer." She turned and smiled at them. "Three… days."

And in a flurry of snow and ice, she disappeared.

The icy trail on the floor suddenly became a massive puddle of water. "REALLY?" Emma huffed.

Killian turned to pick Lilly up. The girl still looked shocked.

Emma ran for a mop and pushed past Killian. "Don't even think about it!"

"I'm not." He cradled her. "I, for one, am always the keenest for you to keep their magical aptness. Same applies to Lilly." He looked at her and Lilly seemed to finally be staring back at her dad. She hugged him hard and he placed his hand on the back of her head. "What can we do?"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The shrouded figure of Rumplestiltskin cruised the alleyways in silence, with a dagger in one hand and the black fairy's wand in the other. Blending into the shadows, he paced slowly to the edge of the sea, where the water sat, frozen solid. There was no sound of waves and an eerie silence surrounded the beach.

He sat on a bench, waiting for his appointment.

The sound of heavy boots made him smile… so did the painless yet familiar feeling of being stabbed with a blade… from behind.

"Well, well…. Like a true pirate, you stab behind the back." He stood and turned to face the man before him. "Is this the gratitude I get… after what I have done for you, captain?" He pushed the blade that stuck out through his stomach back and the sword fell with a clanking sound. "Although by now, you should know that killing the Dark One… takes a whole lot more than that."

The man staggered back. "You… you are not the same…. You are another."

"That is indeed true, dearie." He removed the cloak from his head. "My name, is Rumplestiltskin. Surely you know, that just as sure as a Dark One cursed you, your crew and your purple sailed vessel… only a Dark One can un-curse it." He grinned. "Let's say, I have it in me the skill to make your woes end… Davy Jones."

The pirate picked up his blade. "I ought to know better than to trust an imp of your kind." He huffed as he placed the sword in his sheath. "What do you want?"

Rumplestiltskin sighed. "There is a foe in town, one that you and I share…"

"And how is that of any concern to me?"

Gold laughed. "It concerns you… because it is your flesh and blood she's out to destroy."

The dark-browed man huffed. "My… kin?"

"that little boy of yours… He survived starvation after you abandoned him."

The man's face softened. "Killian?"

"He became… a pretty ruthless pirate. Even you would have been proud. They called him Captain Hook. I battled him, for many a year. Neither of us ever won. But now… he has settled in this town, made himself quite a nice niche: Wed a princess, had a family… same pathetic story."

A huffed smile rose on the cursed Commodore's face. "My boy…"

"Your boy?" Rumple smiled. "You didn0t seem so… loving when you left him to fend on his own, all those years ago…"

"I SAVED HIM!" He roared back. "I saved him from being another slave on that accursed vessel of mine! I said it to him: His soul would roam free, unlike mine."

"And that, it has." He stood up. "Your other son, Liam… he died."

Davy Jones swallowed and looked down. "Aye… I know of it. His remains dwell in the oceans."

"Well, that particular incident drove your other son to the point of madness, abandoned all good form and became the most cutthroat pirate of the realm. But like I said, he's settled nicely here, made peace… and the little child he bore with princess Emma… She is the healer."

The man's eyes flared up. "My granddaughter… The Healer?"

Rumple smiled coldly. "Now will you listen?"

In a mannerism too eerily similar to Killian's, the pirate nodded. "Go ahead."

"I am a man of business, Mr. Jones, and I have a …penchant for deals. So my offer is… fight alongside us. Should we win and defeat the Snow Queen… Then I shall personally break the spell."

"And if we fail?"

Rumple's face fell into coldness. "Then we shall all perish."


	32. Davy Jones

At only sixteen, she was already a magnificent looking young woman; her eyes, large and blue, like her father's, lashes that curled upwards and went on for miles, long strands of straight, raven black hair, a charismatic and flirtatious gaze… and the heart of a giver, a helper…a healer. She was loved by many, had many friends and more than one suitor which made her father's eyebrows quirk more than usual.

How he remembered David being a father to Emma. Story had repeated itself.

Lilly Jones was all that was good and was light, all that was love and kindness.

She walked home from her school, her books in one hand and her bag in the other, chattering and laughing with her friends, when a sudden gust of wind lifted her from the ground.

She screamed.

Up in the air, the familiar face of The Wicked Witch smiled as she grabbed her and placed her back on land.

"Your father and mother… they wronged me terribly…. And for this they didn't pay a price steep enough to quench my need to see them suffer. So now…" She laughed. "I take your life!"

"LILLY!" Screamed her parents as they ran up the hill, trying to reach the tree where their daughter was tied… and reached her just as Zelena ripped her heart from her chest.

"NO!" The captain shouted.

"Oh… now isn't this all too familiar, my dear Captain?" Zelena teased. "I told you… I'd take her life sooner or later."

As she cackled, she closed her fist around the beating, young heart.

"LILLYYYYY! Emma screamed as Zelena playfully flicked her other hand, loosening the ropes in time for the beautiful young woman's now lifeless body to fall from the tree, straight into Killian's arms. He looked up through tears, and saw how the green woman released the dust that had once been a heart, and she evaporated into a green mist.

"NOOOO! NOOO!" He rose on the bed.

Emma turned swiftly. "Killian!" she turned on the light to see him jump out from under the sheets and practically stampede to Lilly's room.

Still sweating, he pushed the door open and gasped as he turned on the light.

The little girl was sleeping.

He held on to the doorframe with both hands, his expression pained, and panted as he slowly came to realize he had been dreaming.

"Hey…" He felt Emma embrace him from behind. She instantly retrieved her hand, feeling he was drenched in sweat. "Killian, what the hell…"

He ran a hand down his face then turned to Emma. "She's… fine…"

"Of course she is." Emma spoke softly, caressing his wet hair. "You, on the other hand…. No pun intended…"

That brought a chuckle to his lips and he drew a deep breath as he leaned his hands on his knees. "Bloody hell, that was just…"

"Another bad memory?"

He stood straight and took a second glance at Lilly before slowly closing her door and turning back to Emma. "No. I don't know what tis was."

He walked past her into the kitchen where he poured himself a small glass of rum. Normally, midnight caps were out of the question by Emma's rules, but she didn0t have the heart to deny him the pleasure this time. He was terribly flustered. Instead, she grabbed another tumbler and sat beside him.

He looked at her. "You're with child! Are you out of your mind, Swan?"

She smiled and stood, reached into the fridge for orange juice, poured it into her glass and after placing it back in the fridge, she sat down again and clinked her glass with his. "Nope. Can't drink. I'm well aware."

He sighed with relief. "Fine then."

"You wanna tell me what's going on in that head of yours?"

Killian stared at his left hand and then drummed his fingers on the table. "I believe this hand has more power in it than I originally thought."

She stared into his eyes, all seriousness. "Talk to me."

He swallowed and nodded. "I saw Lilly. She was…" He smiled. "All grown up and the most beautiful young woman in the world. Zelena, she… got to her. Tied her to a tree and … ripped out her heart. Crushed it before our gazes." He shook his head. "I've seen that before, but even in dreams, love, this was my daughter and just… I can't…"

Emma grinned and reached for his hand. "My best guess is that this was just a bad dream, Killian." She drew circles on the back of his hand with her thumb. "A tree? Zelena? She's stuck in a lamp at Gold's shop."

He shook his head and swallowed another gulp or rum. "It felt damn real."

Emma sighed and looked at his face for a few seconds. His expression was still somewhat pained but nothing like a few minutes earlier. He repeatedly licked his lips, his tongue darting on the right corner of his mouth, and his gaze was fixed on a blank point. His hair was a mess (when was it NOT a mess?) and he did look like he had been running up and down a hill repeatedly.

A sudden need to protect him and everyone she ever cared for grew in the pit of her stomach. She was the savior. And a lot of the times, Killian was like a big kid that needed serious caring for.

She stood up and walked behind him, hugging him from behind and kissing the top of his head. Nothing was said; he simply reached up with one hand and touched her arm, closing his eyes and embracing the warmth and intimacy of that moment.

"We're both stressed, Killian." She spoke, her voice muffled by the thick black mane. "The ice queen, your hand, Lilly, Henry's new skills, now a new baby on the way… It's ok to freak out a little bit." She chuckled. "God knows I have. You're allowed."

He smiled and sighed. "Well thank you, highness… A royal permit to allow my brain to stampede through my heart. That's precious." He looked up at her with a smile. "And… let's not forget, we've two days left before the ice cream lady returns and attempts on our daughter's life, you know… just to add insult to injury."

Emma felt her grasp on Killian harden. "That will NOT happen, ok? We can take her on, all of us, together."

He chuckled. "Me and my dodgy hand?"

She crouched beside him, rubbing his thigh. "Killian, it was that dodgy hand that pushed her the hell away from Lilly's window that time she showed up. Maybe if I taught you a couple of tricks here and there…" She side grinned. "For all you know, Hook, you might just have it in you too and your 'dodgy' hand is just an excuse."

He looked at her, lost in her eyes. "You'd do that, Swan?"

"Come on, is there ANYTHING I wouldn't do for you?" She smiled.

Killian sighed and leaned over to kiss her softly, caressing the side of her head. "Aye, my love. I'll take you up on that."

"Now there's another mission we have ahead of us… you know, before the showdown." She chuckled. "And I sense that one's a bit trickier."

"And what may that be, darling?"

"You… We… we need to inform my family about the little pirate."

His eyes widened. "Bloody hell, hadn't thought about it."

"We're having dinner with them tonight, just so you know."

He huffed. "By them, you mean…"

"I went all out. Mom, dad, Henry, Regina…."

"Well they're bound to find out somehow, anyway. And the crocodile?"

Emma shook her head. "I thought you had all but given up on calling him that."

He shrugged. "It's becoming."

"You're incorrigible."

"Begging your pardon, Mrs. Jones, but I differ on that observation."

She laughed softly. "Yeah, at least Belle will be there; Gold has things to do…"

He stood up and pulled her to him, both embracing in silence in the kitchen.

"You know what we should do?" He whispered into her shoulder.

"What?"

He pulled away and looked into her eyes, smiling. "Have a proper wedding."

Emma stared at him hard and squinted. "We're already married…."

"I know, I know, but…" He paced around the kitchen, flourishing his hand around. "I can't help but wonder what you'd look like, dressed in white. My lady behind the white veil, as the song says." He smiled. "Besides, don't you think your family would appreciate it? Your father giving you away and all that… blasted protocol he's so bloody proud of?"

She chuckled. "Sure. Yeah, they'd love it." She sighed. "But is this what you want?"

He leaned against the sink. "The important question is, do you? I personally just want to see what you would look like as a proper bride, Swan." He closed his eyes and smirked. "Bloody vision."

She laughed aloud. "Ok… yeah sure! Why not? It'll be nice. BUT…" she went close to him. "First things first: Lilly and the Snow Queen."

"Certainly."

"And you let me plan the event."

"As you wish."

"AND we get to go on an actual honeymoon… OUT of Storybrooke."

He smiled. "Sounds like a lovely plan. I am keen on seeing some other parts of this realm."

Her eyes darted to the window and she saw the first light of day starting to shine through the washed glasses by the sink. "Now look what you've done. We've lost the chance for a little extra sleep." She giggled.

"Hmm…" He walked and grabbed her by the waist. "Well, love, you know this is the best time to… brew some freshly ground coffee." He pressed his lips to her neck.

"Oh, I like the sound of that!" She smiled back, wrapping her arms around his neck.

Just as his "dodgy" hand started to course up her pajama top, the sound of a whiny little girl made both their heads turn.

"Mooooommyyyy…."

Killian huffed and felt his hand slide back down. He leaned his forehead on hers. "And… soon they'll be two of those…"

Emma giggled. "Should have thought this through, Captain."

"My love…" He touched her cheek. "I've no regrets." He released her and watched with a smirk as Emma went to see to Lilly.

When she wasn't back after five minutes, he went to see them and was met by the heartwarming sight of Emma curled up inside Lilly's cot, asleep with their beautiful daughter in her arms.

The thought that the Snow Queen would even attempt against the life of such a beautiful little creature, so young and full of life, made his blood curl, especially in light of the fact that said creature was his child, a child he had had with his Swan. He swallowed and tried not to think of his dream as some foreshadowing curse.

He prayed for it.

_The here and now_, he thought, forcing himself to smile at the sight of his two loves… and for a brief instant he wished Henry were there to share the sight.

He nodded, turned back around and decided to actually make some coffee before lying down on the couch and sleeping a little extra time himself.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

THREE HUNDRED AND FIFTY YEARS EARLIER.

"Commodore Jones!"

"Aye…"

"You have been found guilty by the high court and parliament of Arendelle of high treason."

"My Lords…" Captain and Commodore Lord Davy Jones approached. "I know… the evidence points against me, but believe me, I have been framed!"

"And who would frame you, captain?" A magistrate asked. "You were the highest authority on the vessel, second only to the King himself. It is a strange and unfortunate coincidence that you, of all people, should be the sole survivor. He who should have gone down with his ship."

"Alas, lordship, I did! I floated ashore on an empty barrel!" He replied, flustered. "The seas were calm; not a blasted wave or cloud in sight. We were but a mere day away from Mist Haven. The storm, it came from nowhere. I've served this kingdom loyally my entire life, sir! I have a wife, and a wee son, Liam, who has his heart set on becoming a captain! I am a man of my word, an honorable one! The King himself was a friend to me, why would I…?"

"Perhaps you should be the one telling us that, Commodore." Another magistrate spoke dourly. "Perhaps… you had dealings with a certain dark wizard?"

"No, but hold…" Jones licked his lips. "There was a cloaked figure… hovering its cursed self over the deck at sundown, only a few hours before the storm. Sailors and captains are knowledgeable of ghostly beings that roam the seven seas, but this… this ominous creature… He smiled at me." He nodded desperately. "And then disappeared. I know the Dark One usually wears a cloak, sires! He must have cursed the vessel, for it was that very night that the tempest took my ship and with it, the lives of the King and Queen and my loyal crewmen! Please! You must believe me!"

From behind the jury of magistrates, the Viceroy emerged. "Alas, if we could..:" He sighed as he took his seat. "But the evidence is significant, Lord Commodore: While we do not accuse you of intentionally bringing a tragic end to our King and Queen, the fact remains that the vessel was under your command and that the princesses have been orphaned; Princess Elsa must wait a year before she is crowned, dear sir, so we are to remain without a ruler for the duration of her coming of age. This tragedy… whether your doing or not, cannot be overlooked."

As the Viceroy and magistrates nodded their "aye's" in consent, Davy Jones, pressed his lips together and looked to the shackles on his wrists. What would his boy think of him when he grew? Would he face death charges and die unjustly hung for the darkness of an evil imp's deeds? He had always lived by the book of good form… and now he'd go down, a disgraced, dishonored man.

Snow began to fall as the Viceroy banged a gavel, making a teary-eyed Davy Jones raise his face back up.

"Lord Commodore…" The Viceroy sighed. "While this would call for the highest penalty of death by hanging, I can't but think of the esteem our King held for you and of the years of excellent service you provided. Your record as sailor, captain and commodore is impeccable, so is your reputation. Alas, I cannot ignore this tragedy and let it go unpunished, so we have decided your sentence: you are henceforth banished from Arendelle."

"B… banished?" His voice broke.

"You are allowed one day, my Lord, to collect your personal belongings, and take your private vessel, the Flying Dutchman, far from this city."

"But… what of my family? My wife… my boy…"

"They are to remain in Arendelle."

"No…. please…" He begged, tears sliding down his eyes.

"This, I fear, is the one concession I can grant you, Commodore." The Viceroy sighed. "Your life."

That night, Davy Jones did not return to his home. He could not bear the heartache of seeing his wife, Liam's mother, cry for him at port… nor could he bear to say goodbye to his boy.

He left, sailing the Flying Dutchman out to the seas by himself, a broken, desperate man, who swore to seek redemption and reunite with his family as soon as he could. But with the passing of time, his heart, angered and darkened by the unfairness of the jury's decision, took a turn into piracy. He claimed himself the mightiest Pirate to ever hoist a sail, and a year after he was condemned and banished, he returned to Arendelle with a crew of hundreds, pillaged the town, took maidens for his own pleasure and destroyed half the fleet that had once been proudly his own.

Queen Elsa cursed his name; she had been Queen for less than two years and there was civil unrest due to a sudden, cold winter that she knew she would probably be blamed for because of her power to create ice and snow. She could not afford to have another crises in her hands.

Soon after, the former Commodore was once again visited by the shrouded imp.

Davy Jones drew a sword and pointed at the heart of the creature. "You demon! Fight me and kill me!" he shouted. "I have lost it all, my name, my family and my commission, because of you and your blasted malevolence! So show some honor, Dark One, and fight without the use of your black magic!"

The Dark One cackled. "You'd think a sword fight would redeem you, Jones?" He shook his head. "Nay. I've other plans for you."

"What did I ever do to you, evil one?"

"Not a thing. Alas, you are a small yet highly important pawn in this game…"

"What game?"

"You see… I am, in all kingdoms, the most powerful being. But there is… a Queen, a strong one, who intends to claim power over Arendelle. That does not bother me… However, the fact that she is bent on having power to equal my own… that I fear, I cannot allow."

"Queen Elsa is the rightful heir to the throne!" He shouted. "To claim otherwise is dishonorable and unjust."

The Dark One laughed. "All this, coming from the mouth of a pirate who only a few weeks ago devastated the small province of Sullenshore! You claimed not to want to bring shame to your wedded family, but you have taken maidens and forced yourself onto them. Now what would your kindly former wife think, if she heard that one of these innocent, disgraced young ladies were now expecting your child?" He shook his head. "I tell you, Davy Jones, you are not a good man anymore. You are a villain. And villains never get happy endings."

He flicked his hand and a sudden glow took over both Davy Jones and his ship. He suddenly felt even heavier, burdened and ached. "Wh… what have you done, demon?" He huffed.

"I've placed a curse on you and the Flying Dutchman, Captain. That you may only see shore every seven years. You are hence damned to sail until the horizon swallows your very heart. And should you perish, you shall never, ever get rest, lest I grant it…" he paced to Davy. "You must know… your child shall beget another child. And that infant, your grandchild… will be my undoing. Lest he become a pirate, angry, lost and dark-hearted, like yourself. Thus, he may never meet the woman that shall bear him said offspring. He must turn to darkness, and carry forth his father's villainous name." He smiled and nodded. "And that… he shall."

Davy Winced. "Liam…"

"No… not him. He shall only be the conduct through which his brother will inherit the blackness of your own heart."

"You are a deceiver. I have no other son."

"Oh, but you shall. In only a few months, one of the poor young wenches you seduced and abused will bring him into life. His name… will be Killian. And hear me…" He paced to him. "When the child is older, you shall bring him on board… and teach him the pirate way, so he can inherit your curse and be the Captain of the Dutchman. Seven years…" He paced to face Davy Jones. "And should you choose not to take the child into your care… I shall find him."

And just as suddenly as he had arrived, he was gone.

"Amelia Evans…" He whispered, remembering the innocent young lady he had bewitched with a bottle of rum and a shanty… only to have her in his hostel room and leave her to her luck the following morning, ravaged, damaged goods…

And with child.

And Davy Jones wept, sincere tears of regret, the first of many in years to come.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Not that… I have a problem, Emma, you know I love it when you're here!" Snow smiled at her daughter as they shared a family dinner at the loft. "I just… found it strangely out of character that you would… ask me to organize a dinner party for the family when there's a crises… and why are you…?" The confused brunette scratched her lip. "Seriously, the broccoli on your plate? It's not going anywhere."

"Hmmm… yes it is." Emma nodded with a full-mouthed smile. "It's going into my stomach."

Hook chuckled and cleaned his lips with his serviette. "I apologize for her rudeness, love." Hew turned to look at Emma. "You might… want to consider a little more décor on the table, Swan, there are children about, after all!"

"Oh, great!" She slammed the fork down on the plate and turned to look at Hook. "You're my mom now, too?"

"Emma!" Snow gasped.

It took Emma less than two seconds to see the faces of all those seated at the table. "Oh, god." She hid her eyes under her hand. "I actually said that out loud, didn't I?" She turned to Killian and placed both hands on his arm as he stared at her in a mix of bewilderment and fear of another reaction. "Killian, I am so, so sorry, that wasn't me, that's…"

He chuckled. "It's all right, sweetheart. I suppose it's all part of the drama…" He sighed and tilted his head as he took the fork to another head of broccoli and cheese. "I suppose I'd better get used to it."

"Oh, no no no!" She begged. "Honest! I won't do … I won't be that way again, Killian, I swear to god, I don't know what the hell came over me…" Her eyes began to well. "You hate me now, don't you? Of course you do, everyone ends up hating me." She grabbed the serviette and wept into it.

Once again she got a table-round of bewildered glares.

"Ok, Emma, what's wrong?" David huffed.

She looked at all of them in a pool of tears. "I… I don't know!" And more sobbing.

Killian laughed aloud and wrapped his arm around his shoulders, pulling her to himself. "Oh, Swan…."

She looked up at him. "Y… you don't hate me?"

He frowned, the biggest smile still printed on his face. "Are you daft?" He kissed her forehead. "Of course I don't hate you, Emma, bloody hell…"

She grinned and sniveled.

Snow looked from Emma to Hook and back to Emma, when she suddenly gasped and pointed at her. "Oh… OH OH OH!"

David looked at his wife. "What?"

Snow stood up and practically ran around the table to hug her daughter who had once again started to cry as she held her mother back.

Both women were in tears now.

"So… what the heck is this about, Hook?" David winced as he looked at the two women embracing each other.

Killian chuckled. "Well, Dave…" He sighed and tapped his finger on the table. "It would appear you're to be a grandfather… yet again."

David froze for a second and Killian feared for a few instances that there would be a blowout. But David only smiled. "You guys are…?"

"That we are, mate."

"HA HA!" David chuckled and stood to hug Emma while Snow ran, unbridled, to hug Killian, who responded with a grunt and an uncomfortable yet sincere hug back.

"This is good!" Snow nodded as she looked, teary eyed, into his eyes. "Especially after the one that you guys lost! I am so happy!"

Killian scratched the back of his ear. "Aye, highness. Thank you."

Minutes later, Regina and Henry arrived and were given the news. Henry was slightly shaken but happy, while Regina simply complemented the couple while insisting on trying to "keep the pirate population down to a minimum".

When Belle arrived, she did so in a flustered state.

"Belle?" Emma said as she opened the door, her smile disappearing.

"Emma…, it's back. Or I don't know if it's back or not, but… It's there."

Emma sneered. "What? What is back?"

"I believe it's the Jolly Roger."

Killian's face shot up to hers. "What?" He stood and walked to her. "Are you certain?"

Emma turned to him. "Who did you sell it to?"

"It doesn't matter… it's impossible for it to come back." He turned to Emma. "When that blasted Blackbeard traded me the Jolly for a bean, he made me watch as he burned it to a pile of ash on the water."

Emma gasped and reached for him. "Killian…" she held him and he responded by kissing her head.

"So whatever vessel has docked here… it's a pirate ship, but not Hook's?" Snow asked, shaking her head.

The young Mrs. Gold paced from one side of the room to another. "I don't know… At least it looks like The Jolly Roger. Rumple's been gone for two days. The water is still frozen, so I've no idea how the ship got there. The last thing he said to me was that he needed to prepare us all… for the final battle with the Snow Queen… and that he needed to find Him."

Killian stood up when Lilly started shouting Daddy from her spot on the floor.

"Him?" David sneered. "Him who, Belle?"

"Oh bloody hell…"

Killian's sudden pained and popular expression drew their gazes. They found Hook standing over his daughter, staring down at her cubes on the floor.

DAVY JONES

He ran out to the street and was followed by Emma. As he stood there, he turned his face in the direction of the piers, barely visible from the loft yet near enough to see the ships that docked there.

Sure enough, it sat there… blacks and browns and looking almost exactly like the Jolly Roger… but dilapidated… and with purple sails.

"Killian… is that…?" Emma winced.

"Aye…" He exhaled, his lips pressed hard. "The Flying Dutchman." He swallowed and spoke through gritted teeth. "It seems the cunning Crocodile has organized a happy family gathering for me…." He turned to look at Emma. "My precious father is now in Storybrooke."


	33. Sacrifice

He avoided the meeting. He had never done that… but 'that man' would be there.

He knew he was being a baby about it. But then, he had practically been one, last time they had seen each other.

He knew he would be there… and the way he felt, it would probably be better if he spent a drinking binge with the crocodile and Peter Pan than to see that man again. Unlike Emma, he didn't yearn for a reunion. While Emma's childhood had been marked with the notion that she had been supposedly abandoned on the side of a highway barely a few minutes old, Killian remembered his "Da" clear as day, remembered the day he rescued him from the streets at five and kept him by his side on the Flying Dutchman until he was seven. He remembered the affectionate hugs and the many times he called him "son" or "my boy".

And he also remembered the last kiss he got on his tatty little head the night before he rose to find the silhouette of the Dutchman far in the distance.

Emma's life had been tough, sure… But she at least had no recollection of the particular moment when her only parent abandoned her to her luck.

He didn't weep over it. He just felt the lump in his throat.

So instead of the meeting, he chose to take Lilly to the playground.

He had often passed by there and had seen plenty of moms with their little ones, and Emma had taken Lilly there a few times herself together with Henry who, despite his age, was still a sucker for a tire swing. He tried not to think about Davy Jones as Lilly's little hand tugged on his excitedly the moment they arrived at the playground.

"We-hey, there we go!" He smiled and he released her. "She jumped on the spot a few times as he opened the little gate that enclosed the assortment of swings, slides, ladders, roundabouts, towers, mazes and see-saws. Even Killian smiled at the sight of those things and sort of hoped he'd be a boy again… although… no, maybe not. "So, little darling, where do you want to go first, then? Mh?" He grinned at Lilly.

"See-saw!" She screamed.

"Aye, see-saw it is, love, and…" He scratched his ear and smiled at her again. "Which one might that be?"

The little girl sprinted to the safe-looking device that rather looked like a catapult, and had Lilly not looked like she was one hundred percent sure of what she was doing as she climbed into the little plastic set, he would have adamantly grabbed his daughter and run to the hills. He looked at a mom that was there beside them as she gently pushed the see-saw up and down and he turned with a smile to Lilly, relishing in her laughter.

They then moved to the slides, then the swings and finally he let her go long enough for her to climb up and toddle around the maze.

"They grow so fast, don't they?" The coldness of the voice sent a chill down Killian's spine. It always did.

Rumple caught up and stood by Hook as he observed his daughter, his cane in his hand. "Before you know it, they've grown up and sometimes… they even die before you do."

Killian pressed his lips tight together, the memory of Bae still aching both in different ways.

"We had a meeting… Captain." He turned to look at Killian. "You are an important part of it, and yet… you failed to show. Even your wife was slightly vexed."

Hook huffed, his gaze fixed on his daughter as she laughed and ran from one end of the tubed maze to the other. "We are in a public conveyance and we are surrounded by children here, Crocodile; I am loath to engage in a verbal exchange with you at present time, because believe me, it would not be pleasant."

"I see…" Gold turned to look at Lilly. "And why may that be, if I may ask?"

Killian closed his eyes. "Why the bloody hell did you bring him here?"

"Oh, you mean, the other Captain Jones." He smiled. "He's another piece in the puzzle, I thought I had explained that during our last meeting at the diner."

Killian turned to him fully. "But you did not mention you were intent on summoning him!" he spat, his eyes fiery with contempt. "What the devil are you playing at here, mate?"

"To be honest, I have no care whatsoever for your little feud with your father, Captain. Like I said…" he turned to Killian, cool and chilling. "He is but a valuable chess piece. He was loyal to the rulers of Arendelle and was set up for a usurper to take hold of the throne and for an Ice Magician to rule over. He knows things, important things. He was, after all, the one leading the expedition where the royals tragically lost their lives and was silenced by a curse." He turned fully to Killian. "Children, dearie, are a piece of ourselves, an extension of our own desires: We live vicariously through them. You, for instance…" he pointed his cane at Lilly. "Why are you hoping for your daughter to live and not die under the curse of the Snow Queen? Because you have hopes and dreams for her… And I bet one of those wishes is for her to be better than you."

Killian frowned but did not rebuke.

"What do you know about the Dark One previous to me?" Gold asked coldly.

"Not a whole lot." Killian replied dryly.

"His name was Zoso." Gold turned as he walked to a bench nearby. "It was he who placed the curse on the Flying Dutchman…" he looked at Killian as he sat, the pirate's eyes fixed on his little girl as he listened. "And from what your progenitor told me, he wanted you to also be a part of the crew, the cursed crew." Gold placed both hands on his cane. "When you reached the age of seven, if you had stayed another day aboard the Dutchman, then dearie…" he looked at Killian again. "I'm afraid you'd not be here today, watching your little one play with her little friends, nor would you be enjoying the prospect of a new child coming your way."

Killian's breath caught in his chest, his eyes now fixed on Rumplestiltskin's face.

"No… you lie."

"Why would I?" Rumple smiled vilely. "The plans of the dark One that preceded me do not affect me in the least; I have no interest in plotting a family reunion for you to happily exchange presents and cards on your birthdays, Jones. The point remains: The man left you to save you from a curse. Now… do you see just how much of your relationship with miss Swan is a fated thing? This dark one, he knew you were fated to meet a savior… and that the child would bring an end to the plot of the snow queen… and his own. THAT, captain, is the reason he wanted you aboard the Dutchman, cursed…. So you'd never meet Emma Swan… and never beget Lilly." He stood up. "Your father… abandoned you to save you from a curse. Now, isn't that a familiar tale?"

A million thoughts raced through Killian's mind, thoughts of what could have been; He knew his own fate had been skewed by the death of Liam and Milah, by Pan's bloody campaigning, by years of unquenchable thirst for revenge. So he understood what had driven Davy Jones to cruel, relentless piracy.

But saving him? By leaving him?

He stood and huffed, making his way to collect Lilly and go home. "You'd never understand?"

"Wouldn't I?" Gold disappeared and reappeared in front of Killian, who huffed and rolled his eyes as he avoided crashing with the imp. "Do you really believe your story and miss Swan's are the only tales of abandonment? Have you forgotten dear Mr. Pan?"

"And you forgot you abandoned your OWN boy…" Killian hissed. "Let's bring the cards out and lay then out flat, shall we? You let him go, to hold on to your power. So who are you to tell me… to be understanding to the man who for whatever reason almost saw to my death as a boy?"

He paced away to Lilly.

"Baelfire… died to save me, Captain."

Killian stopped again, but didn't turn. Gold walked to him. "My son died a hero… who forgave the biggest mistake of my life. And you know what you call him for that? A hero. You should know, captain Jones. You were quite fond of my boy as well. He forgave me. His life was forfeit… but he brought peace to my soul."

"Aye… the question is…" Killian turned to him. "Did you deserve it?"

Gold shrugged. "Who knows? I am a Dark Wizard, I have done unspeakable things, lied, cursed and destroyed many lives, while trying to redeem myself for my boy. I failed. Your father fell victim to a curse. And while his action was indeed painful to you, dearie… he has far less baggage in his rear pocket than I do. And yet, my son found it in his heart to pardon my ways."

Killian swallowed and simply stared back.

"Like I said… they grow up so fast and then, you lose them. If you wish to hold on to your little one… you'd better get a grip, captain. And that includes making peace with your past, whether you can stomach the presence of Davy Jones or not. This… is why I gave you your hand, so you would settle the score with your dark past. Like you, he's a good fighter… and wants nothing more than to be free of this curse, by taking down the Snow Queen, the same foe who now threatens your dear Lilly's life." He took two steps closer to Killian's face. "You have but one day till she returns for her, dearie. You decide what man you want to be: The unforgiving son who still dwells in the ache of his abandonment, or like Bae… the hero. Think it well, Captain, for in sacrifice lie some of the most heroic deeds, the ones that save countless lives. Sacrifice."

And off he poofed in a cloud of velvety red smoke.

Killian huffed and ran a hand down his face. "Bloody hell… Talking in cryptic speech, the bastard." He then turned to Lilly and walked in her direction. "Come now, Lilly, love! Enough play time, we have to be going now."

"Nonono…" She shook her head.

Killian's face peeked over the wooden floor of the castle maze. "Angel, we have to be with mum at the café, now…"

"NONONOOO!"

"Lilly Jones, you get off that set NOW!" He spoke in a far harsher tone. "We are leaving!"

"YOU GO AWAY!"

She may have been a healer, a little genius and a potentially powerful wizard-to-be… But Lilly Jones could throw an embarrassing tantrum with the best of them.

"Right!" Killian huffed. "Perfect bloody end to a perfect bloody day…" He reached up and jumped up into the maze, grabbed Lilly and jumped back down with a rabid, screaming, crying and wrestling little under his right arm.

He set her down, sat by the bench and grabbed her by the arm. "Now, listen to me good and hard here, miss!" He hissed at his daughter, his index finger pointed at her face. "You WILL stop crying and whimpering right this very moment! We have been here long enough and you are being decidedly naughty!"

"WANNA PLAAAAAYYYY!" Lilly screamed, teared up, and kicking the ground. "HATE YOU!"

"One more scream from you, young lady, and you will not be playing with Henry tonight! Are we clear?"

Lilly's eyes widened and she gasped, her lower lip wobbly and quivering as she tried to hold back from crying. Still, Killian was quite familiar with that particular gaze: His own. He could stare daggers like no one else and it seemed his daughter had inherited the trait.

She stopped crying.

But not whimpering.

She and Killian walked to Granny's to meet Emma for lunch; the meeting was over. Lilly refused to give her hand to her father the whole way and he practically had to grab her wrist to cross the streets, only for her to whine and twist her little hand roughly to free herself from his grasp as soon as they reached each sidewalk. "Fine, go ahead, Lilly, sulk and be mad, suit yourself, you have two things to worry about now…" He giggled.

Lilly was livid.

In a sense, it was comforting for Hook to see that in many respects (massive temper tantrums included), she was a normal little girl.

And besides, after twenty minutes at the diner, she was back to her old charming self while Killian spoke to Emma about his exchange with Gold.

Emma simply listened quietly… and grinned as she held his hand.

Later on as they all walked home, Lilly held his hand too.

That night after bathing and dinner, Killian and Emma sat by the kitchen table while Henry played with his little sister; every other week it was their turn to have him over, and the first night was always the most exciting for the little girl.

And as the boy and the little one played "find the hidden toy", the parents squirmed and held hands with ached looks on their faces.

"We've one day left, Swan…" Killian spoke softly.

"I know."

"I should have been at the meeting, I know, but…." He ran his hand through his hair.

"I know." She squeezed his hand gently.

He turned to her. "What are we to do?"

Emma sighed and swallowed. "We get the hell out of dodge."

Killian frowned and bit his lip. "I…. don't quite follow. You mean… we leave town? How, Emma? The walls are all around, we're stuck!"

"Nothing a good old heap of dynamite can't solve."

"Are you insane, love?"

She huffed, her eyes pained. "Do you have any better ideas?"

He ran a hand through his hair, his other hand squeezing hers hard. "No… no, I've none. Bloody hell."

They continued to stare at their children, with helpless looks on their faces, when a tap on the door caught their attention. Emma stood up and opened to find Elsa standing there.

"Hi…"

"Is… this a bad time? May I come in?"

Emma sighed and allowed Elsa in. Hook stood courteously before again sitting down as Emma pulled Elsa into the kitchen. "Captain…" Elsa spoke softly. "We missed you at the meeting earlier today…"

He nodded. "Aye love. I didn't think it would do at all for everyone to see me duel with my father. Alas…" He grinned at her. "I may have to rethink that."

"Listen…" Elsa sat down. "I may have an idea… to buy us time and to… to save Lilly." Emma sat down by Killian immediately. "Yes, ok, that's a great start to this conversation!"

"We're listening." Hook nodded.

Elsa fidgeted. "You… may not like it."

Emma shook her head. "I can't dislike it any more than the idea of that woman freezing her to death."

The beautiful blonde queen reached into her coat pocket and held her hand out before them.

"This is my idea…"

Emma and Killian sat aghast. In Elsa's open palm sat a magic bean.

Her eyes wider than two dinner plates, Emma looked up at Elsa. "How did you…?"

"I have always had it. For an emergency." She shrugged and grinned. "When I was in Arendelle, there was a man, a foreign man, who was an expert in obtaining rare and hard to find artifacts. He… procured me a bean in exchange for gold."

Killian laughed. "Smee…"

"So… the whole time you were in the urn you had this?"

"Yes."

Emma smiled. "So…. We can leave!" she turned to Killian. "The three of us, we can get the hell out of here!"

"I'm afraid… that would not be an option." Elsa sighed. "She would know the three of you left and would easily follow you. She has her own means to travel. I have no idea what those are, but when she sees you are all missing she will move to find you."

"So what's the bean for?" Emma frowned.

Elsa swallowed and licked her lips as she placed the bean back in her pocket. "When you have a beast chasing after you, and you are a party of three, you have to think of a way to stop the chase. Three people, all running in a single direction… it is likely that the beast will catch you and eat you all. Unless…"

"Part ways…" Killian breathed out, his gaze fixed on a point beyond Elsa's shoulder.

Elsa nodded. "Exactly."

Emma gasped. "No… No no no, I will not, I won't, I…" She stood up and started pacing around the kitchen. "I WILL NOT send my daughter away to a place that I don't know if I will ever, EVER see her again!"

"Emma…" Elsa stood pleadingly. "You have to believe that you will find her… see her again. She is the ONLY one who can defeat her. My mother, she will not think twice tomorrow night. Lilly is powerful, but she is still too young to fight." She glanced over at Killian who was still gazing at a blank point somewhere, but his eyes had welled with tears. "This is her best chance."

"I… I can't abandon my daughter! No, I…" Emma sobbed miserably. "I know what it is to grow without your parents, to be sent away like that! I can't do this to her! No, I… I love her so much, we both love her so much!"

"Sacrifice…" Killian spoke.

Emma turned sharply to him. "What?"

He turned his teary-eyed gaze to her. "The Crocodile was right… _in sacrifice lie some of the most heroic deeds, the ones that save countless lives_, he said. Emma…" He stood up and grabbed Emma by the shoulders. "Elsa is right. We have to let her go."

"What? Killian, no!"

"Darling, darling… listen!" he grabbed her face with both hands. "I don't like this any more than you do, Swan, but we have to think: You, you're the savior. Your parents sent you off so you could live a life away from the blasted curse Regina bestowed your family with. And here, it all turned out well, did it not? And me… I…" He shook his head and looked down. "… You heard what I told you, love: My father, apparently also abandoned me to stop me from being cursed alongside him… so that you and I could be together; so we could have Lilly, the only one who can put an end to this wretch of a woman." He smiled. "Perhaps… this is what is meant to be… Perhaps it is fate, Emma. But for now, there is nowhere in Storybrooke we could hide her, we both know this!"

Emma's cries were breaking his heart. "Killian…"

He sighed and held her hard. "I know my love… I know…" He too was crying by now.

"How can we just… send her off into a portal? On her own? Where will she be? How will she live? She can't be alone!" Emma wept.

"She won't be."

Everyone turned to the door to find Henry standing there, holding his sister in his arms.

The young boy sighed. "I will go with her."

Emma could have sworn the earth beneath her feet had disappeared. "Oh, no… No, no, I can't lose both my children! NO! Henry! PLEASE!

"Mom, listen, it's perfect!" Henry sighed. "I am the only one the Snow Queen has never seen! I am the only one she has no idea exists! If anyone else, you, Killian, my grandpa or grandma, Elsa, ANYONE else went with her, she would know who to look for to get her! See? It HAS to be me!"

"Lad, the other realms are not quite like this one, you have never been there…" Killian shook his head. "Besides, you've your other mother to think of, she will keel over if she hears this!"

Henry nodded. "You and my grandpa have taught me pretty well how to use the sword. I can do it. And I can talk to my mom, she will have to understand."

"Aye." Lilly nodded.

Sniffing, Emma turned her face to her daughter and simply ran to both her kids, holding them. "I can't… I can't do this…"

Killian sat on a chair and held his forehead with one hand as tears silently slipped directly from his lashes to the floor.

"Mom, I promise you… we will be fine. I can take care of Lilly. And I know you will find us and bring us home. You're the savior, the savior always, always comes back!"

"Emma, I know a place where they could go… and they would be perfectly safe there. It is a place of love so strong, even the Snow Queen's power can't cross that border." Elsa grinned. "They will be completely safe, I promise."

"Where is this place?" Killian spoke without raising his head, his voice broken.

Henry stopped Elsa. "No, don't tell them."

"Henry!" Killian's face snapped up.

"No!" he looked at both of them. "There's a thing called 'plausible deniability'. If you guys really don't know where we are, even if she tried to make you say, you wouldn't know!"

"He's right." Elsa nodded.

Both Emma and Killian stared at the boy in awe.

"Why do you want to do this, lad?" Killian said, his voice broken.

"I am a seer!" The boy smiled. "And I can see this ending really well if we play it right."

Emma sobbed silently and caressed his face, grinning. "You're so brave…"

"Aye, m'boy. The bravest, indeed." Killian concurred with a smile. He stood up and joined the family embrace.

Elsa used that moment to slip out of the kitchen. She turned back to look at Killian who was following her with his gaze.

"I shall be back here tomorrow at three. She will be looking for Lilly after the dusk, so it will be better to see them off earlier."

Killian nodded. "Till then."

Saddened and teary-eyed. The beautiful Queen Elsa of Arendelle didn't stop walking until she was halfway down the road, where she finally broke down.

Another family broken by time, realm and distance.

Just like she and Anna.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The night sky in the west mountainous region of Arendelle was clear, clearer than ever before. The rock troll priest studied the skies carefully, looking for what he thought was a blessing coming their way.

And then he saw it: The star crossing westward.

He smiled.

"What is it you see, Gothi?" Bulda spoke softly. "Any news from the stars?"

"Indeed…" He nodded softly. "Indeed, and good tidings they are!"

"She… returns to Arendelle?"

"She does! The Queen will come home! The princess shall be set free!" He turned to look at her. "Announce to the king: We shall have guests: The seer will be the guardian of the healer, the promised warrior to vanquish the evils of the Snow Queen. Oh!" He smiled. "And find Kristoff! The princess too shall be his once more. Our wait is over."

"No need to seek me out!"

The two trolls turned to look at the king and bowed their heads. "Grand Pabbie…"

The heavy rock troll king bowed back. "Gothi… Bulda…" he looked up to the sky as he joined them. "It will be a precarious stay; as long as the child, the healer, remains in our care, she and her sibling shall be safe. But we all know that for this curse to be broken, she must go to the Queen's castle and touch the charm that was given to her, so many years ago, by the Dark One. Only then shall she be powerless and will the ice be thawed."

"Majesty…" Gothi shook his head. "She is but a toddler still. How will she make the journey? The cold! The wolves!"

"Not to mention the mirrors." Bulda sighed. "The Queen travels through them in an instant. The moment she feels the child is near and that her magic and power are at risk, she will be swift. I fear for the little one."

"She has a stout heart, despite her tender age." The king nodded. "She was born with wisdom beyond her years."

"Aye. She is the child of the savior, born of true love." Gothi nodded. "Princess Emma, of Mist Haven."

"And what of the father?" Gelda shrugged. "He has no special power! He was a sailor and a pirate and the son of Arendelle's declared foe, Davy Jones."

"How are you to know he has no power, Gelda?" Grand Pabbie placed a hand on her shoulder. "The child is a second generation product of true love; the Captain that begot her may not wield magic as we know of it… but he is the source of it. He has unparalleled love in his heart, and that love fuels both the power of the savior, mother of the child, and the healer herself. Believe it: He matters greatly." He grinned. "There is no stronger magic than that. Plus…" He smiled. "He's an old friend to our Kristoff. Anyone who our boy deems trustworthy is a good man in my book. Now…" He stepped back. "We must prepare. The children will need sleeping accommodations, proper meals and clothing. And when time comes and they need to embark on the journey to the North Mountain. We can trust Kristoff will guide them and care for them well."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

It was fitting for the general mood that the following day, the skies were grey and snow had started to fall.

Regina adamantly tried to refuse Henry's departure, but the boy himself had convinced her, stating that it was "his time to be a hero", a quest he had been keen to find from the day Miss Blanchard had given him the book.

Not to mention, he had a point in saying that he was the only one of them the Snow Queen had no clue about. Or at least that's what they hoped.

All agreed to meet at Granny's to see the children off.

Elsa pulled Henry to the side: "Listen Henry: Close your eyes before you take the leap into the portal: Think of arriving to the plains where the Rock Trolls reside. Call for Grand Pabbie: He will shelter you."

Henry smiled. "Oh the trolls! Yeah, they're cool!" He recalled from the movie.

"Keep close vigil to your sister." Elsa nodded. "When the witch is defeated, I will help your parents find you both."

Elsa felt a tug on her dress. "Elsa?"

She looked down and found Lilly smiling at her. "Yes, little one?"

Lilly summoned Elsa with her little hand, as if to tell her a secret. Elsa crouched on the floor and leaned her ear close.

"You hug mommy and daddy. They sad."

Elsa closed her eyes and grinned to conceal tears. "I won't leave their side, I promise."

Regina sniffed though her tears, Robin's hands firmly holding her from behind as she buttoned Henry's coat. "You have the potion I gave you?" She sobbed. "If you… feel danger, you and your sister, drink it fast. It will make you both invisible."

"Got it."

"And take care of your sister…"

"Yep. I will."

Regina broke down. "And yourself…"

"Mom." Henry too was now fighting tears as he embraced the once Evil Queen, who apparently refused to let go until Robin gave her a gentle tug.

When Henry turned to Emma and Killian, he nearly had a change of heart: Emma sat on a chair, looking like she had been hit by a truck, her eyes swollen and red, her face stained with tear tracks and her gaze, distant and lost. Killian held her, leaning his head on hers with an equally disgruntled façade. Henry grabbed Lilly's hand and walked to them. "We're ready."

Emma raised her sullen face to her son, tears silently coursing down her cheeks as she stared at her two children. Killian's grip on her hardened and his body tensed.

From behind, Snow and David cradled each other in their arms, also sobbing.

Henry placed a hand on Killian's shoulder. "I promise… I will make you proud."

Killian heaved and closed his eyes as he threw a fisted arm around the boy's neck, holding him tight. "You already do, lad… You already do." he whispered back, his voice broken.

Lilly placed a hand on Emma's knee. "Mommy?"

Emma's tired eyes slowly coursed to her daughter's.

"My baby…" She whispered, caressing her cheek gently.

Killian released Henry and went down on his knees to fully hold his daughter, tears running down his face like they had never done before.

Nothing, not the loss of his brother, Milah and Bae, could have ever hurt more than saying goodbye to his child.

Emma turned to her son. "Henry…." She moaned softly. "Please… please never leave each… each other." She sobbed as she held her son.

The little family all held each other tight, and when Elsa stepped forward, Emma and Killian tensed.

"It is time. They have to go."

Reluctantly, Killian stood up, pulling Emma with him. She was shaking horribly as her hands slowly released their grip on both Henry and Lilly.

Henry looked at them as he took three steps back. "You guys stick together." He sniffed. "She wants us all to fall apart. We're not going to give her the pleasure." He smiled at them. "We're a family. We always will be."

A set of sad smiles rose on the lips of everyone in the room.

"We will find the two of you!" David shouted as Elsa dropped the bean on the floor and stepped back. The vortex opened immediately.

Henry picked Lilly up. "Yeah. You always will, grandpa!"

"MOMMY! DADDY!" Lilly shouted from her brother's arms. "LOVE YOU!"

"We love you too, darling!" Killian smiled back between tears. "Always will!"

"DON'T LET GO OF HER, HENRY!" Emma shouted.

"NEVER! LOVE YOU!" He shouted back.

Everyone stepped back and Emma saw though a heavy haze of tears how her most precious little treasures were swallowed whole into the spinning tornado.

No sooner had the boy and the little girl fallen though, the swirling vortex closed up.

Emma 's weeping turned into a scream as her knees gave. She and Killian fell into a heap on the floor. Killian tried to soften the fall, thinking of the child she still had inside of her, but wasn't far off the mark, emotionally.

"You must be strong…" Elsa approached them. "My mother will be back tonight. You cannot allow her to see though your minds. She will guess where the children are now."

"But… are you sure they are in a safe place?" Snow sobbed.

Elsa grinned and nodded. "The safest."

"Well…" A red-eyed Regina huffed. "I suppose we'd better get ready, I don't want my son to be on his own with his sister more than it's absolutely necessary. Emma?"

The savior turned her head from the floor, her sobs receding slowly but her gaze, an image of devastation. Regina walked to her. "I gave Henry a few spells and potions. They will be fine. We need to start working."

The savior turned her face to Killian, pleadingly. He had stopped crying, but looked decidedly ached and torn. He simply nodded and grinned as best he could. "Go love."

She nodded and wiped her tears as she stood up. She wobbled, steadied herself and sighed, pressing her lips tight together, the ached look replaced by one of sheer wanton hatred. "Right. Let's get this done; let's finish that frosty bitch."

She turned to Killian and they exchanged a knowing nod. "I love you…" She mouthed at him, before turning and walking after Regina, out of the diner.

Killian slumped down on the chair and sighed, his head hanging. He felt David's hand on his shoulder. "We won't give up, Hook."

Killian raised his eyes at him and reached to grab David's forearm. "Now I know."

Snow walked to them. "What is it, Killian?"

Killian stood up and sighed a broken breath. "You… you gave up Emma. You had to." He swallowed the knot in his throat. "And now I understand… what you felt. That… crushing feeling on your chest… where you can't breathe. I know now." He nodded.

Snow hugged him hard and David placed a hand on his shoulder. "Hey…" he spoke. "This will pass. We will find them. We always find each other, sooner or later."

"We must leave." Elsa insisted.

"I suggest we don't seek refuge in any of our known abodes." Robin sighed. "We must remain together in places where this woman… doesn't think of looking."

"Then I have just the place!"

Everyone turned to the door… to see Gold, Belle and a man, tall, young and handsome, standing there.

Killian gulped.

"Everyone, this is Davy Jones. He's to help us defeat the Snow Queen."

"Bloody Hell…" Killian muttered under his breath. The man looked exactly the way he remembered him.

When Davy's eyes reached Killian, they froze and a sigh escaped his lips. "Hello again, boy."

Killian took three steps forward, holding is gaze with a darkened look. "Listen here: I will fight this with you, defeat this woman and find my children, but let's be clear on a couple of points: First, I am no boy. Not any more. So you're not to call me that, nor are you to address me as son, or lad. My name is Killian. Second, while I now understand your past actions, they still made my life a living hell, so don't think of this for one second as you 'getting me back'. We're here to fight: I get my family, you get your curse broken and we then merrily part ways, is that absolutely clear… mate?"

A small flash of pain cruised through Davy's eyes before he swallowed it and nodded. "Aye, Killian. Crystal clear." He nodded.

"Good. Now…" He licked his lips. "Where is this… secure hideaway?"

"My ship."

David huffed. "No offense there, captain, but that is pretty visible."

"That, dearie, is subjective." Gold turned coldly to the prince. "You see, the curse behind the Flying Dutchman makes it what in this realm, you would know as a 'ghost ship'. We can make it disappear."

Emma and Regina went back indoors, panting. "It has begin." Regina nodded. "The ice on the beach has started to melt. Time's up."

Emma turned to Davy Jones. She had met him a day earlier, in the meeting Killian had missed. "Mr. Jones." She gave a gentle nod of her head.

"Milady…" He echoed.

"Fine. So, shall we all just head to the Captain's vessel?"

And before anyone could say anything, Rumplestiltskin poofed them all away.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

THUMP!

"Oh…. God, that's not a nice way to travel…" Henry stood, his hand scraped from cradling Lilly's head. "You okay there, sis?"

"Mh-hm…" She whimpered back.

"Hey… we will see them all again."

She nodded. But her pout remained.

Henry looked around. "Wow… look at that sky…" he smiled. "You know, dad, told me that the stars were inverse here… I can see where he was going with that." He put Lilly on the floor and grabbed her hand, both looking around at their snowy surroundings. "Ugh… it's cold."

A voice startled him from behind. "Then we'd best get you to shelter."

Henry turned with his sword drawn.

The young man laughed, holding his hands up. "Chill, little guy. I'm one of the good ones. The troll king sent me to pick you guys up."

"H… how do we know we can trust you?" Henry hissed.

Lilly giggled and the tall, blonde guy smiled at her. "That must be the healer. Killian's girl." He laughed again. "Spitting image of the man."

Henry frowned. "Y… you know him?"

"Yep." He crossed his arms before him. "He was kind of my hero there, for a while. The very first guy to stand up against King Hans." He shrugged. "I tipped him off on a few things more than a few times. It was he who took Elsa from here, in the urn…" He paced to Henry, holding his hand out. "I'm Kristoff, by the way."

Henry smiled broadly and placed his sword back in its sheath. "Oh, yeah! You're Anna's dude!"

Kristoff's smile fell. "Yeah, well… she was forced to marry the other guy, I was banished… not that I ever left. Haven't seen her since. Nobody knows where Anna is. But I still have hopes that she will still take me back."

Henry nodded.

By then, Lilly had spent the past few minutes befriending the reindeer.

"Hey Sven!" Kristoff smiled. "Don't try to charm her, buddy, she's too little to ride your back."

"Sven!" Lilly smiled at the animal.

Henry could have sworn he heard the reindeer laugh back.

"Yeah, yeah, she knows your name, don0t get all cocky. Here…" Kristoff produced a couple of carrots from his sled and fed them to the animal. "Come on guys, hop in. Better get going before the wolves start to get any ideas."

Sven raised his head and made a sound that sounded awfully like WOLVES?

Henry laughed. "This is awesome, it's just like in the movie!"

Kiristoff shook his head. "Movie? What's a movie?"

"Oh… " Henry shook his head and jumped on the sled, pulling Lilly to his lap. "I think you and I are going to have some pretty long and amusing conversations, Kristoff…"

"Aye. Long." Lilly concurred.

"Well, an honor, coming from a prince and princess of Mist Haven." The man laughed and jumped in. "Okay then, Sven…. Let's go home!"


	34. Shattered Sight

**OVER THREE HUNDRED FOLLOWS…. I AM FLABBAGASTERED GUYS! THANK YOU SO MUCH! I AM IN AWE AND TRULLY HAPPY THAT SO MANY PEOPLE ARE ENJOYING THIS FIC! (SOMEONE EVEN SENT ME A MESSAGE SAYING THAT SHE STARTED WONDERING HOW THE WRITERS WOULD HANDLE LILLY'S PROBLEM BEFORE SHE REMEMBERED MY STORY WAS A FIC AND NOT CANON, LOL, TO YOU MY DEAR, THANK YOU! YOU'RE A GEM!)**

**I APOLOGIZE FOR THE DELAY OF THIS CHAPTER, BUT I'VE HAD SOME PRETTY SERIOUS HEALTH ISSUES (STILL DEALING WITH THOSE, AND BELIEVE ME, THEY ARE PRETTY SERIOUS, BUT NOTHING I CAN'T HANDLE WITH TIME AND PATIENCE) AND I'VE BEEN EITHER RESTING OR VISITING DOCTORS OR SIMPLY NOT IN THE MOOD… BUT I HAVE THE ENTIRE STORY IN MY HEAD AND WE ARE MAYBE SOME 8 OR 9 CHAPTERS AWAY FROM THE END, SO STICK AROUND. LILLY WILL DEFINITELY NOT BE ONE OF THOSE FICS THAT ARE LEFT UNFINISHED! THANKS AGAIN FOR THE FOLLOWS AND COMMENTS AND ESPECIALLY THE FAVES!**

Emma was tossing and turning in bed, drenched in fine sweat that hung from every pore of her body.

"Lilly… Lilly no…. Henry… No, no… NO!" she sat up with a jolt, sweating cold and with the mild trace of tears still fresh on her cheeks. She heaved… and broke down.

Killian was not there.

She sniffed as she came into realization of her whereabouts: It was a very finely kept wooden room, with large portraits of what looked like people from another era, horses and still life. There were no signs of technology; an oil lamp shone from the corner of the room and a candle lit what looked like a pristine fruit basket on the desk in the middle of the space. Under the windows, books that looked more than a few centuries old lined the bottom space cabinet and Emma shuddered at the thought of spring cleaning through them, finding all assortments of spiders. It was a larger, older and more luxurious version of Killian's quarters in the Jolly Roger; the creaking of the wood as the whole scenario gently swayed from side to side made Emma remember her whereabouts: The Flying Dutchman.

Her inner Johnny Depp chuckled.

She sighed deep and ran a hand down her face; the nightmare hadn't just occurred in her dreams: her children were gone, hidden in a land she had never seen and without the certainty of ever being able to get them back home into her arms. And as she put her feet down on the wooden floor, she felt the tugging need to be sick.

At least one of her kids was still with her. Or in her. Whatever.

She retched, but then took in a deep breath to try and control herself. "Oh, god…" she huffed and she licked her lips. She then looked around as she stood up. "Killian?" she whispered, looking around her.

Suddenly, there was a gentle tap on the door, and not one second later, it opened. Emma paced in hurry to embrace her husband, but stopped cold to find another figure standing there.

"M… Mr. Jones." she muttered with a breathy sigh.

"Hello dear." He nodded with a grin. "I figured you'd need a couple of things. I could hear you tossing and turning in bed." He placed a wooden bucket before her and what looked like a vinegar bottle.

"Erhm… thank-you?" She tried to smile. "Vinegar?"

"Aye. My late wife, bless her precious soul, swore that when she was with child, a sniff of vinegar would ease the queasiness of her afflicted innards…" He shrugged. "I figured it might be worth the try with you."

She chuckled. "So… you know about… me."

Davy sighed deep. "My son might not believe it, but I do care about family affairs And that is my grandchild that you carry, so yes, princess. I'm well-informed of your current state."

Emma nodded and took the vinegar from his hand. "Listen, I know you… tried to give Killian his best shot by leaving him, but… you have to understand. I know I do. It's not an easy thing, and even if you meant well, growing up alone does things to you."

Davy smiled…. And Emma noticed at that moment that Killian hadn't only inherited his father's deep, blue gaze, but also his perfect grin.

"Believe me, dear Emma; I hold no grudge against my son for his resentment. No need. I know I saved him. Whether he forgives me for it or not, it's entirely up to him. My mind is at ease. Besides, he did rather well." He tilted his head to the table. "I take it the fruit there is of your liking?"

She nodded swiftly. "Yeah. Thanks." She paced around the room and looked at a painting by the door. "Is this you?"

"Aye." He grinned. "That would be me, with my wife Helenna, and our son, Liam. He was but a bairn, still… My wee boy." He sighed deep.

"Liam…" Emma grinned as she licked her lip. "Killian's brother…"

The captain nodded. "Ever wondered about my Killian's appearance? Look over there…" He nodded in the direction of another painting. "That, my dear, is your husband, when he was a child. I commissioned this painting while he was with me."

With a profound smile, Emma grabbed the oil lamp from the table and stared at the image of what was definitely a very, very young Killian; his hair was long and shaggy and his ocean blue eyes looked way too big for his own face.

"Killian." She bit her lip, deeply amused.

"Aye… believe it or not dear, he too was once a child."

"Of course he was…" She shook her head, a joking grin on her face. "Like a million years ago."

"More like… two hundred."

She chuckled. "How old was he here?"

The man paced to her. "This was days before I left him ashore… just short of his seventh birthday."

It impressed Emma to see just how much Lilly resembled her father. Lilly…. The thought made her smile disappear and tears once again threatened to leave her eyes.

"Lilly…" a weak sob left her lips, the sickness swiftly returning to her gut as she covered her lips with her mouth.

"Now dear…" He placed a hand on her shoulder. "We shall defeat Ingrid and bring back your children. I pledge myself at your service and won't rest until the deed is done."

"Ingrid?" Emma looked at him. "Is that her name?"

"It is indeed. One of three sisters. Two turned out evil, wicked women. The one that was kind and gentle-hearted, Gerda, was the one who took young Elsa for a proper rearing." He shook his head. "She did well. But Ingrid was unforgiving, it seems…"

"Can't blame her." Emma sighed sadly.

"She would have raised little Elsa for evil… they would have been unstoppable."

"She had her child taken from her, nonetheless. I know that perhaps it was the best thing for her, but…" Emma shook her head. "It hurts. Not having your child with you."

Davy Jones sighed deeply and turned to look at Killian's portrait as he nodded. "Aye. I will agree with you on that, princess."

Emma studied his face as she licked her lips. "You… really did care for him, didn't you?"

Davy's face was fixed on the painting of the young Killian. "His mother was… a bar girl. The most beautiful face you ever saw, much like my son's; I was rather fond of her; she was a sweet child, with a kind smile and a soft gaze… hair darker than a magpie's wings and her eyes a deep, dark brown that stood gently out of her silken white skin. She was… a perfect beauty. " He grinned. "During a last night in the port, I… drank a little too much and the lady was already infatuated." He shook his head. "I am not proud of the way I wronged her by asking her to remain in my chambers for the night under the lure and promise that I'd return for her and make her a bride. But when the sun rose, and much as I would have liked to keep the promise, the curse called me out to sea again. To have wed her and taken her would have been to curse her soul as well. So I left… and broke her heart in the wake of my departure." He gulped as Emma heard his story. "When I returned to port, I wanted to seek her out, but I had heard she had died years before, hours or days after birthing my son; she had named him Killian, like the prophecy had deemed." He smiled. "I sought him out… and as soon as I saw myself in his eyes, I knew I had a chance at redemption. But the Dark One's intent had been to lure my boy into this ship, for me to keep him here, damned and cursed… so he'd never meet you… and that wonderful little angel of yours would have never been born. The Queen would have been undefeatable." He turned to look at her. "As you see, on the grand scale of things, love, I saved him. And if I had to do it again, at the costly price of my broken heart, I'd do it."

She felt short of breath and licked her lips, suddenly feeling reassured of what had just taken place a few hours earlier with Lilly and Henry. She allowed the edges of her lips to tilt slightly upwards.

"Anylord, I trust the vinegar should be enough to soothe the sickness, milady…" He bowed gently.

Emma turned and offered a shy little grin. "Thank you."

He gave a quick nod with a lopsided grin (that was so Killian it was risible) and turned to leave.

"Mr. Jones?"

He turned swiftly. "Highness?"

"Y… you haven't seen… Killian, have you?"

He nodded with a scorn. "Indeed I have. He's up at the deck. He's been standing there for an hour now, I believe… always a star-gazer, that lad." He turned to a wardrobe and produced a blanket. "Here, wrap this around yourself, love, if you are to join him. It's cold out this night." And after gently handing it to Emma, he nodded once more as he left. "I trust you will find these accommodations to your liking… Rest well. At dawn we proceed to plan our next move against this… villain Queen."

He left as silently as he had come in.

Emma twisted her lip as she pulled the cork from the vinegar bottle and took a deep whiff. The tangy, pungent aroma made her cough and gag, but as soon as she recovered, the nausea had disappeared. She raised both eyebrows and grinned. "Damn. I'll be sure to remember that one…"

She made her way up the creaking stairs to the deck; this vessel was far bigger than the Jolly Roger she remembered, but had a very similar layout. She stepped down from the stern and looked around until she found the shady silhouette of Killian Jones, gazing up at the stars from the stem. The wind tussled his hair and he looked every bit the old pirate captain she had met in the past, gallant, fully erect and poised like a true-blooded son of a Lord.

What a gorgeous man he was to behold, she thought… and made a mental note never to let him know she actually thought he was every bit the devilishly handsome man he claimed himself to be.

She wrapped the blanket tight around her neck and she paced towards her somewhat wanderlust-looking pirate.

"Hey…" She whispered as she reached his side.

Hook turned a startled face and a sad smile. "Emma… what are you doing up here in the cold, love? You and the babe need your sleep!" He put an arm around her shoulders.

"I kinda… missed my night in shining armor." She smiled and sighed, leaning her head on his shoulder.

"How so, Swan?"

She swallowed. "I had a hell of a nightmare."

He pulled her gently. "Apologies, darling." He kissed the top of her head and leaned his jaw on the blond-tressed crown of his wife. "I needed to… breathe for a bit."

"I know the feeling…" She looked up at him. "And you missed this too, didn't you?" She held his hand. "Like you used to do, in the Jolly Roger, just… come to the deck and look at the stars at night…"

Killian gave a deep breath and a nod. "Aye love… I do. I don't regret trading her at all, because that trade gave me your heart and a family, but I can't deny that I do occasionally yearn for the sea." Emma's face fell and he immediately lifted it, his thumb feeling the cleft in her chin. "Now, now Swan, don't. I told you, I'd not trade what I have with you in Storybrooke for ten of Arendelle's finest clipper ships. I trust you know that."

She wrapped her arms around his waist. "I can't help thinking that… sometimes… well…" She sighed and shook her head. "You're so good to me. It's hard sometimes, just… looking at all I have now and didn't have before… and I am always so afraid of losing it all."

"As am I, love… but…" He pressed his lips together and nodded. "I suppose we'll have to press on and keep on thinking we're happily stuck with each other and no power will be able to relieve us from each other's horribly inauspicious presence." Emma laughed at his words and he smiled as he gently pressed his lips to her forehead. "Aye, love, you're stuck with me."

"Woe is me, living with you…"

He smiled and studied every inch of her face. "Bloody hell, woman."

"What?"

He caressed her cheek. "You truly are the most beautiful creature on this earth."

Her heart swelled; she stood on the tips of her toes and gently touched her lips to his for a chaste little kiss before she returned to his embrace. "Now… this is familiar… " She sighed. "Feeling gloomy… on a ship deck. With a blanket."

He chuckled and nodded. "Aye, I remember. Quite the bitter-sweet occasion: We sat to observe the rising of the sun, after our first time making love together. And the last for a whole year." He chuckled. "That's where our lass came from."

She looked at him and grinned, took his hand and pulled him to the lower deck, where she sat, leaning her back on the mast and patting the space next to her. "Come on pirate…. Sit with me and tell me about the stars." She swallowed. "Let's change that memory and make it a good one."

He complied and sat down beside her as she wrapped the both of them under the blanket, leaning her back on his chest as he held her from behind.

"Very well… see that up there? That triad?" He nodded. "In this realm, so I've read, you call it Orion's Belt. It's arranged as an exact mirror of how we saw it from the other side. We called it "The three falls of Icharus" and the star further south during winter always pointed the way home. Now, see over there?" He grabbed her hand and pointed it. "That was our south star, but here it's the North… and it's right over Storybrooke. So… that star always seems to lead me home."

She turned and tried to look into his eyes. "Now who would have ever thought that the dread pirate Hook could actually be so annoyingly cute?"

He laughed and held her to himself, depositing a kiss on her shoulder. After a brief silence, he spoke. "You've no idea…"

"Of what?"

He sighed. "How bad it was… That year, after you crossed the town line in your vessel and I returned to the Enchanted Forest. It took pains to recover the Jolly, as you well know. You can't begin to imagine how many nights I'd sit on the deck, just like we're sitting now, by myself… talking to you. As if you were there." He swallowed the painful memory. "I'd talk to you about the stars, the solstice, all the different types of mermaids and which ones you have to be weary of. I ranted against the Crocodile and my intent on finishing him off until I met you, I spoke to you about Milah and my brother, and the many places I'd been to and had seen… I even asked to to marry me once." He laughed a shy, embarrassed giggle. "And then I'd go into my quarters and do unspeakable things to myself with my one good hand as I called your name…"

"Killian!" Emma slapped him on the thigh, playfully.

"Well, what's a man to do in such dire conditions, Swan?" He kissed her cheek. "I was bloody love starved and I just couldn't shake the memory of you from my mind." He licked his lips. "I loved you even then, and bloody hell, did I want you. And every time, seeing that I was always alone afterwards, I'd cry myself to sleep when I was done. It was the worst year of my entire existence. I missed you something awful darling…"

"Oh come on, Hook…" She nuzzled up against him. "We're supposed to be making a nice memory here…"

"I am." He placed his hand on her still not bulging tummy. "This is a damn sight better that that was." He kissed her neck and kept his face tucked into it with a deep, comforting sigh.

There was another brief silence before he spoke. "There's another reason I'm up here, love."

Emma nodded. "Yeah. You also had a nightmare and you are wondering whether or not Lilly had it too, and you hate that you're not there to hold her."

He nodded. "Gods, you know me so well."

She grabbed both his hands as they rested on her stomach, and entwined her fingers with his. "We'll all be together again, Killian. I don't care what we have to do to get this fucking woman out of the way." She felt herself weep in silence. "I want our kids back."

"Aye…" he whispered. "As do I, Swan."

As the sun slowly rose, Killian and Emma found themselves dozing off… and no one bothered to wake them as they napped through the early hours of the day, his head on the mast, her head on his shoulder and their arms tight around each other.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

She ran a finger along the rails of the cot, ice tendrils forming under the cold touch. She then smiled as she gently played with the toy mobile made of glass unicorns that had originally been intended for Emma's nursery and that now hung above Lilly's crib. Everything was in place, still, silent and dark, at the Jones household.

"My Elsa…" she sighed, her face studying every inch of the empty bedroom wondering what raising her chill-endowed daughter might have been like while admiring all the furniture and toys belonging to one Lilly Jones.

But there was no Lilly Jones.

There were simply no Jones' at all, as a matter of fact.

She reached the chest of drawers where her toys and clothes were kept, and smiled at a framed image of Emma and Killian, each kissing one cheek of their little girl, as the infant smiled and obviously laughed insanely. "What an adorable family…" She sighed, the frame slowly freezing over under her touch.

As she walked out of the nursery, her slender figure caught another image, framed on the living room wall, depicting Emma and Killian's hands, their fingers locked and twined together.

"So wonderful that you all have this blessed opportunity to be a family… and mine was stolen from me." She flicked her hand up and the glass of the frame cracked into tiny shards that fell to the floor. "And yet, I am the villain. Emma…" She approached the image of the savior's hand. "You were my child once. You should know how it aches to be torn from those you love." She turned to the sofa and found the little toy dog that Snow had bought for Lilly. She picked it up and kissed it gently. "They can hide you all they want, Healer… But I have come to get my family back together and you are in the way of that. And nothing, not you, not the pirate, the seer or the prince and princess of Mist Haven shall take that from me. I will find you, Lilly. And when I do…" she smiled and froze the toy before dropping it to the floor. "I WILL get my two girls back. I SHALL HAVE MY FAMILY."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Look there, m'lad! What do you see?" Davy Jones smiled as he pointed at the horizon from atop the crow's nest.

Six year old Killian smiled a wonderfully toothless grin, the spyglass covering one little kohl adorned eye. "It's the South Edge, Da! We've reached the shores of Fairy's Shire." He smiled enthusiastically as his father ruffled his hair with a cackle.

"Clever lad!" He took the spyglass from him. "Now, let's go back down to the deck, and… KILLIAN!"

The boy had already slid a bandana around a rope and was gliding down the thirty feet to the deck with a loud Whoo-hoo. Once he reached the wooden floors, he received a cheer from the ship's crew and he turned and waved to his father. "I'm down here, Da!"

Davy huffed and grinned. "Bloody little sod." He grabbed the hook-ended rope and jumped down himself, using his weight against the pulleys atop the sail mast to reach the deck. He went to Killian and pulled his ear. "NOW, lad, listen hard! You do not do this kind of thing until your captain relays such orders! You could have died there, boy!"

Killian winced. "I'm… sorry, Da!"

Davy released him and huffed. "Right and well you should be! Now…" He tilted his head in the direction of the port. "While the men and I go to collect supplies, you have chores to do. This deck must be swabbed from stem to stern. Are we clear, son?"

"Aye, Da." Killian replied, teary eyed, looking to the floor.

Davy took one look at his contrite son and sighed as he crouched before him. "Now, there…" He raised his son's face to his own. "I know you must think me wicked, admonishing you so… But you are still a boy, Killian." He caressed his head. "And you are very, very important to me. I do not want to see you get hurt because of some childish impulse."

Killian raised his eyes and scorned. "I just want to be like you…"

Davy smiled and again ruffled the boy's hair. "Aye, m'boy. But all in due time; Patience, Killian, is a virtue, and a virtue that is very well paid off. Listen…" He grabbed his boy's shoulders. "Should you have to wait one or a hundred years, there are things that are well worth waiting AND working for."

"Like what?" The boy sniffed.

"Love. And honor." He smiled at his son. "Being a Captain is a proud job, even if said Captain were a pirate, for even among thieves, there is honor."

Killian nodded and swallowed. "Very well."

"So now… you dashing devil, where's that lady-killer smile of yours, son?" Killian raised an eyebrow and grinned. "Aye… there it is, you handsome little pirate. In time, Killian Jones, you will be remembered. But for now…" He stood straight and took his jacket as it was handed to him from his first mate. "You get to stay here with cook and Sailor Rodgers… and swab. I want to see the floors shining when we're back tomorrow."

"So you shall, da."

Davy Jones walked to the gangplank and onto the pier, disappearing from sight as the young boy went to the lower deck for the bucket and cloth to swab and clean.

He'd be a captain for sure… one day.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"HENDYYYY!"

"Hey hey!" henry roused his sister awake. "Are you ok there, sis?"

Lilly whimpered and hugged her brother. "Daddy!"

"You were dreaming of him?"

"Aye.."

"Bad dreams?"

"Aye…"

"That connection is priceless, lad." The rock troll king smiled at Henry. "I know all about the captain's hand and the price he pays for having it."

Lilly sniveled as she looked at the troll king. "Pabbie…" she babbled as she stood from her freshly made bed to hug him.

"Ohhh you are indeed a treasure, little one." The rock troll held her back.

Henry sighed and looked down at his hands.

The king turned a sad pair of eyes to Henry. "What makes a handsome young man's mind so restless, seer?"

Henry shook his head. "I miss everyone… It's been five days. I've not had a single vision of my mom or dad, or my other mom or my grandparents… ort anyone." He looked at Grandpabbie. "How will I know they have defeated the queen?"

The troll king looked saddened. "My lad… it is not up to them… to terminate the power of the Snow Queen…" He placed a very heavy hand on his knee. "It is your sister's duty."

"Wait… what?" Henry stood up. "My mom agreed to let us come and hide here to protect Lilly! And them!" he paced around. "I had a vision, where my mom was frozen… without Lilly there to unfreeze her, she could die! Why did we come here, if they don't stand a chance?"

Grand Pabbie smiled. "Henry, my lad… hope, should always be the last thing to perish. This whole event was foreseen over five hundred years ago. As for your mother, well…" He nodded. "She is a strong hearted being of light. She has an undying source of love; freezing curses can always be broken when a deed of true love is performed. She has her captain with her, and her family. You, on the other hand, are here to help us focus your power on the success of your sister's deeds."

Henry gulped as he sat down, one hand in his hair. "A year ago, I saw my birth father's coffin lowered into the soil. I have Killian now and I have Regina…. But I really don't want to be shoveling dirt down my birth mom's grave."

"Then we must be swift." Grand Pabbie nodded.

Lilly hugged Henry suddenly. "Bodder Hendy… shhhh." She said and kissed his cheek.

Henry laughed. "I love you too Lillz." He hugged her, and turned to Grand Pabbie. "What do we have to do?"

Grand Pabbie sighed. "There is an ice castle, up on the North Mountain. It was built by Queen Elsa, as shelter from prying eyes…. But after Ingrid took over, she made it her own living space. In that castle, lies a mirror, embedded with terrible, terrible magic."

"A mirror?" Henry shrugged. "That's easy enough, let's just go up there and smash it."

"It's not that simple…" Came Kristoff's voice from the door as he approached the small meeting. "That mirror, is a portal, but also the source of her magic. Should that mirror shatter, it would unleash a curse called "the spell of shattered sight". Only your sister is immune to the magic of it."

Henry shook his head. "H… how does it work?"

Kristoff shook his head. Grand Pabbie continued. "That mirror, lad, was made for the sole purpose of showing you your deepest, darkest side. It is designed to poison what goodness you may have, and make you see only the evils of the world, starting by yours. It can corrupt the soul of the most commendably noble man in this and any realm."

"If the mirror shatters…." Kristoff continued. "The mirror could break into a million pieces…. And everyone we know and love, in this and every realm, will turn away from the light and succumb to their own darkness. All realms would perish in an endless war among people, families… friends and lovers. All would turn against one another."

Henry was wide-eyed. "Did I say 'smash it'? Scratch that. Not a good idea."

"But your sister…" Grand Pabbie smiled. "Her heart is the purest. She is still an infant. The Snow Queen believes that this is her weakness, but it is indeed, her biggest asset, for she is so young and still so innocent, she has no evil that could corrupt her heart. A product of true love with power the likes she could have never foreseen."

Henry nodded. "And… what does she have to do?"

"She must… look into it and… touch the glass."

Henry smiled. "Well, that doesn't sound too bad!"

"Doesn't it?" Kristoff shook his head and sighed. "Henry, that mirror is the Queen's eye in our world. She will see us coming… and she would definitely return swiftly, because as you've been told, that mirror is her portal." He shook his head. "This is not an easy task, kid."

Lilly huffed and sat down on the floor. "Blab la bla!" She blurted.

Grand Pabbie turned to look at the little girl. "I regret, my dear princess, that this does require planning."

Lilly shook her head and babbled. "Blabbrr dada… Mirror… touch… go home…"

Grand Pabbie laughed. "Stout young lady. Her mother and father's child, for sure…." He looked at Henry. "Lad, we need your seer skills. Rest for this night. I shall embed you with magic that will allow you to dream of the events to come, so that we may find a weakness or a path that might be safer for you to take. But even in dreams, boy…" Grand Pabbie approached Henry. "Should you encounter the mirror… do NOT take heed. It will call you… it will summon your name. But whatever you do, do NOT look into it."

Henry nodded and looked at his sister. "Well, sis… I guess we get to be heroes now. It's all up to us…"

She smiled and raised her hands in the air. "Hero! YEEEH!"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"So, what are we to do?" Emma huffed, shaking her head. "Maybe she can't see us, but I can see Storybrooke and people are probably not happy that we're missing when the whole damn town is frozen and three feet deep in snow."

"That is indeed a good question… Glad I brought this along…" Gold hissed as he produced his crystal ball. "We can see what she's up to."

He twirled his hand over the ball as everyone huddled around to look. The Queen was seen in a cave in the Storybrooke woods, pacing though beautiful and cold furnishings…. Including a grand mirror. She asked the mirror if there was any sign of the little Jones child… and the mirror showed… nothing. She huffed and turned, before sitting down.

Rumplestiltskin frowned. "That… is a pressing issue…"

Regina raised her face. "Is that…. The mirror?"

Elsa sneered. "The mirror of shattered sights…" She took two steps back. "Oh no…"

"Wonderful. Now that we're all clear on the meaning of that…" Killian smiled with sarcasm.

"What the hell is that thing?" Robin shook his head.

Gold stepped away from the ball and turned to look at them. "Miss Swan… are you familiar with that particular fairy tale?"

Emma blinked and nodded before hiding her face in her hands. "We're… so fucked."

Gold shook his head. "There may be hope for all of us still…"

"Aye, yes, well, excuse my brashness, Crocodile, but there are some of us here that have no idea what the bloody hell you're on about! Care to elaborate?"

David sighed and nodded. "I agree with the pirate!"

Killian winked at him. "As always, you have my back there, 'Dave'…"

Snow rolled her eyes and turned to Gold after she laid her little son down to sleep. "Please, Mr. Gold? What is this… mirror? What does it do?"

Gold turned to Elsa, and the young blonde stood up as she rubbed her hands in angst. "A long time ago, a demon of a very ancient world created a mirror; This mirror was designed to challenge the goodness and beauty of the maker, by reflecting only the darkest, most evil thoughts in the minds of anyone who dared to look into it. He then tried to take it to the heavens, and force the angels to look upon it, so that they would become corrupt. But angles are pure beings, and instead for shattering their spirits, the mirror broke. All the pieces fell to earth, and many, many found the way into the hearts of many men. This is the reason there is war, famine… so much hatred in the world. " She raised her face and looked at them. "It was said that only a great sorcerer could mange to collect the remaining pieces, and put the mirror back together. That sorcerer would have power beyond man's wildest dreams." She sighed. "I suppose my mother battled against the previous Dark One for control over this mirror…. He knew she would be more powerful, and that is why he betrayed her. But now, it seems, she has pieced it together."

"This mirror, Snow, is not just as evil as they come." Regina stood. "It's a portal. It has a twin. If you shatter one, you shatter the other. No matter where anyone is, if that witch unleashes the curse, we will all be fighting each other… to death."

"Bloody hell, the entire town will destroy itself…" Killian frowned.

Belle shook her head. "And they'd be no one left."

"Wait… WAIT!" Emma held a hand up. "If she's after Lilly because she is the only one in this world who can stop her, that means that Lilly is the only one who can… shatter this mirror and bring her to her knees?"

Rumple nodded. "I'm afraid so, Dearie."

David huffed and shook his head. "So… her being over in… wherever she is in Arendelle… is no good. She will find her!"

Killian gulped hard.

"No!" elsa shook her head. "As long as she remains w¡th th…. Where she and Henry are, they are safe."

"Aye, but we all know that won't be happening now, dearie." Rumple sighed. "She's fated to break the curse… She will be heading there… with her brother. And as soon as they do, they will be vulnerable."

"No…" Emma shuddered.

Killian stood up and walked back to the crystal ball. "Croco…" He closed his eyes and sighed. "Rumplestiltskin… show us that they are well…" He turned his eyes and hated himself for actually pleading with his lifetime foe. "I beg of you…"

Regina stood and walked to the pirate. "I second that! I want to see Henry!"

Before long, everyone was around the ball. Rumple sighed. "Very well… "

He twirled his hand around and soon enough, Henry and Lilly were visible.

Everyone in the room heaved and smiled. Emma felt tears in her eyes, as did Regina and Snow. David just placed a hand on Killian's shoulder as the pirate laughed softly. "They look ok…" The prince said.

"They are… for now." Rumple grinned, and the image disappeared

"No… NO!" Emma stepped forward. "Bring them back!"

"Miss Swan…" Rumple looked up at her. "The less you know regarding their whereabouts, the bigger their chances for success…"

Emma looked down and turned to Hook's embrace. Regina did the same with the former bandit.

Belle sighed and smiled. "Listen… We must believe that this will have a positive outcome. The little girl is wise way beyond her years and she probably has a few hidden ideas up her sleeve, not to mention her brother is a seer. They will be fine. Emma…" She reached for the blonde savior and smiled. "Believe in her."

Emma looked up and grinned with a nod. "Yeah… yeah you're right."

Robin stepped forward. "So then… what are we to do, to help the little one in her mission?"

Davy Jones stepped in. "That… would be where my help comes in handy!"

Killian rolled his eyes and scratched his beard as everyone turned to him. Elsa paced to him. "Lord Commodore Jones… How?"

The cursed pirate smiled at the young Queen and bowed his head. "Majesty…"

She grinned.

The captain looked at everyone. "We must be aware of the moment the children are headed to the place where her mirror sits, so that the wee princess can break the spell. As for us…" he looked straight into Killian's eyes. "We must create a diversion." He paced to his son and Killian stood straight, his face dour. "I believe Pirates know how to do that very well. I heard about your deed, Killian. Stealing the urn from the treasury?"

Killian gulped and slowly nodded. "Aye. That I can do."

Robin sighed. "So… we're cannon fodder for the Queen while the child gets her chance…"

Rumple nodded. "Indeed."

There was a collective sigh and nod. But Killian turned to Emma. "What of you, love? You're with child."

"Yep. And we're both willing to fight."

"Emma…"

"WE WILL FIGHT, KILLIAN!" She barked.

"Captain…" Gold paced to Hook. "The fact that she has two hearts beating inside of her instead of one puts her at an advantage…"

"I WILL NOT RISK HER LIFE, OR THE LIFE OF MY UNBORN CHILD!" He barked back.

Emma huffed. "So what, I'm just supposed to sit in the captain's quarters, crocheting?" She walked to Killian and touched his face. "Remember… we either all do this as a family… or we don't do it at all…"

Hook swallowed and turned his head, ran his hand through his hair and sighed as he once again walked to Emma. "What if something happens to you, love? I'd… I'd not know what to do…"

Emma smiled. "Hey, we're survivors, remember? Besides, if it came to that… you would definitely have something to do…"

"What…"

"Be a good father." She caressed his cheek and leaned up for a gentle kiss.

"I may vomit…" Regina turned around.

Hook bit his lower lip. "Very well…" He looked up to his father's eyes. "You and I… We head to the map room now. We plan this through. Once we have the moves set… " He turned to look at everyone. "We inform you, and you… magical people can strategize what you may…"

Everyone nodded in compliance and it gave Killian a very private thrill to see that even Gold nodded.

He huffed and turned to look at his father. "Commodore Jones… lead the way."

Davy smiled at his son and pointed his hand out the door. "Aye. After you… captain Hook."

Emma grinned and saw Killian pace out with his father without even as much as glancing at him.

But he would eventually, she knew that much.

That pirate husband of hers was actually a big softie….


	35. The set up

**SO SO SORRY FOR THE DELAY; LIKE I TOLD YOU BEFORE, I'M DEALING WITH SOME PRETTY INTERESTING HEALTH ISSUES (STILL) AND HAVEN'T HAD A CLEAR ENOUGH HEAD TO WRITE, BUT SINCE WE'RE MOVING ON IN THE SHOW, I FIGURED I MIGHT AS WELL MOVE ON AS WELL. THIS CHAPTER WAS KIND OF HARD TO WRITE, MOSTLY BECAUSE THIS IS THE PART WHEN THE SH*T STARTS TO HIT THE FAN, LOL. THANKS AGAIN TO ALL THE PEOPLE FOLLOWING AND FAVING THIS STORY, ESPECIALLY THOSE WHO LEAVE COMMENTS. YOU GUYS ALWAYS, ALWAYS MAKE THE EFFORT WORTH MY WHILE! =) LOVE YOU ALL (AND DON'T MISS IT, 2 HR. SHOW THIS SUNDAYYYY!)**

"_Henryyyy… You KNOW you wanna look! Come on!"_

Grand Pabbie had been right; even in dreams, the mirror was a nasty piece of work; it's magic was indeed powerful and Henry was acutely aware of the sound of what appeared to be his own voice, calling out to him from the pristine, white looking glass that hung in the middle of the ice castle.

"_Henry!"_

"Not… gonna… look." The boy pressed his lips together and went about the settings of the ice cave he was seeing in his dreams.

"_You wanna see the future, do you, seer? Hmmm_." The mirror image of himself smirked a dark smile, too dark for a young man his age. "_You already know how this is gonna end: Your mother, the precious savior? She… will… die, frozen solid in the arms of her pirate. And there is nothing you will be able to do to help her because you will have been playing nanny…_"

Henry huffed hard and continued browsing around. The place was sterile.

"This is like the fortress of solitude, only without the coolness of Superman…" He sighed.

"_And your sister? She will perish too. This is your dream, Henry, so if you're dreaming this, you know it to be true."_

"No." Henry shook his head.

He still didn't look in the mirror.

The crystal circle laughed at him. _"Why, you really do believe you're being a hero? This is a selfish plea for you to feel you're worth the same as you mothers… But you're not. You don't even have REAL magic, like Emma and Regina do."_

"Be quiet."

"_She abandoned you too, Henry. You know it. And the pirate that you call dad? He may have been fond of you because of your birthfather, but deep down you know he only does it because he's hot for Emma_."

"NO!"

"_And now, look at you. So desperately clinging on to the hope that you can save the day. When is a seer wrong? You have the ability to see into the future and you won't even listen to your own omens! SHE WILL DIE, HENRY, and there is not a damn thing you can do about it!_"

With a sudden thrust, Henry picked up a ball of ice and was less than a second from hurling it at the glass, but the view of his own reflection looking evil and dark, stopped him.

"_There, that's better. Face the truth!"_ His reflection spoke. "_You know you're slated to fail; you know there's nothing you can do to stop the cogs of fate! Why are you even bothering_?"

There was a cold tug in Henry's heart and he sighed deep, lowering his hand.

"Because you're right." Henry nodded. "You can't stop the cogs of fate… but you can change their direction. And you? You're a stupid piece of glass with a curse upon it, nothing else! And you know what?" He paced to the mirror. "I may be a seer… but that does not mean that what I see, is a future that is set. We make the future!"

"_Or so you say."_ The reflection barked back. "_Tomorrow before the end of the day, you will have tried to stop my mistress and my magic by utilizing your infant sister on me. So brave_!" It laughed. "_But take heed: should you succeed, you must remember that all magic comes with a price. Your little sister's magic will be depleted… and you won't save your mother from peril. That, I fear, henry, will be the price of destroying me._"

"You're bluffing."

"_I might be… or might not be, seer. It is entirely up to you. You must choose."_

"All heroes make sacrifices."

The mirror laughed again. "_So, THIS is what it really IS about! Your covetous desire to become a hero! You've always wanted to be one, haven't you? Yessss… So risk your little sister's life, let your mother, her husband and friends die… and become Henry, the knight in shining armor! Just what makes you believe you're worth the trouble?_"

Henry hesitated, but soon felt a warm glow wrap around his heart, and he smiled fully.

"Because, my grandmother always told me, that fairly tales are a reminder that things will always, always get better… if we hold on to hope. And I am the truest believer in that!" He raised his hand with the ice ball and the reflection stopped smiling. "I have a family… and if we love them and they love us… they will ALWAYS find us!"

With a swift movement, he threw the ice ball into the mirror and it shattered, scattering in the wind as a fine dust.

Henry swallowed. "Good thing you're only a dream and not the real thing…"

He woke up, startled, to Grand Pabbie and Kristoff.

"Wow…" he ran a hand through his hair as he panted. "Stupid mirror."

"What did you see, boy?" Pabbie asked kindly.

Henry smiled at the rock troll. "I think I know her weakness…"

Kristoff smiled and huffed and Grand Pabbie put his hands together. "Good! And what is it?"

"Well, for one, we still have the element of surprise; she has no idea Lilly and I are here yet. Second, in my dream, the mirror said to me that Lilly would lose her magic… but she won't die. Third… in the dream, I was able to destroy it with a ball of ice, solid… looked kind of like a crystal ball. And there was no curse, no… shattered sight." Henry nodded.

Kristoff sighed. "Did it forebode something bad?"

Henry's smile fell. "Yeah. But I have a plan for that as well… you see… maybe my mom will be frozen. But she has something that the Snow Queen doesn't." He sighed and nodded. "And right now, that alone will save her life." He turned to look at Lilly and grinned.

Grand Pabbie smiled and nodded. "I know what you speak of, my lad. And it is that quality your family has that Ingrid lost a long time ago: Hope."

"Yep!" He sighed and looked at Kristoff. "We leave in the morning."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Killian paced around the map room as his father closed the door behind him. An uncomfortable silence was shared as the older Jones cleared his throat, avoiding eye contact with his son as he approached the table.

Killian walked around the room, looking at the walls.

"Not a blasted thing changed…"

"Hmm?" Davy raised his face to see the back of Killian's head. "What?"

Killian sighed and turned to look at his father. "This room. I learned mapping here. It looks exactly the way I remember it."

"Aye. You were quite skilled, for a boy of your age." Davy nodded. "I… came to learn in later years that your talents for reading the stars were only surpassed by your superb mathematics and unprecedented navigational skill."

Killian frowned, licked his lip and looked to the floor. "Aye, well…"

"I know you are angry with me, Killian." He approached his son. "But trust me: I followed your every step, good and bad, throughout your life. That is until you disappeared, three hundred years back. Last I knew, your ship fell into a Maelstrom. I searched the remains of the vessel, in the depths of the ocean, but never found you."

Killian laughed a humorless laugh. "That's because it was no Maelstrom, mate; As you said, I have superb skills when it comes to navigation and I'd not be daft enough to fall into a Maelstrom. It was a portal. To Neverland."

Davy frowned. "Even I wouldn't venture to that accused place. Why would you even…?"

"Look, let's just… not, shall we?" Killian raised his hand. "I have an expectant wife who is willing to run into battle like she weren't expectant at all, a wonderful young man who sees me as his father now and whom I vowed to a dear late friend I'd raise as my own, and a wee lass who is not only our only hope, but the bloody core of all my joys and woes, so tick tock." He twirled his hand around and went to the desk. "What have you in mind to ambush this… Snow Queen?"

Davy sighed, looking at his son with a mixed sense of pride and heartache. He sighed and nodded in conformity as he paced to Killian. "Aye… well, there are two things the Snow Queen fears: One, the loss of her power. The other… you."

Killian frowned. "Come again? Me?"

"It seems the lady Swan gets her power from you, Killian." Davy reached for a bottle of rum that looked too old for consumption but that was probably the best brew in the entire world. "As long as you are around Emma, she can fight her." He handed the bottle over to Killian, who took it and drank, licking his lips as he handed it back to his father. "Not defeat her… but fight her."

"What do you know about this… mirror?" Killian asked, intrigued.

Davy sat down with a huff, his body slumping down on the chair with the burden of the curse he bore on his back. "The mirror is the wickedest of evils. It feeds on man's fears and insecurities, shows the person the darkest secrets of his own heart, the ones we all try to keep deeply concealed. That evil thing has the capacity of making the most trifling sin appear capital… And that, mate, corrupts the souls of men. Were it to shatter and should a shard of it find its way into your heart…" he raised his eyes directly to Killian's. "…even you would probably be the one to deliver your daughter to her death. It is THAT powerful."

"Bloody hell." Killian leaned back and rubbed his eyes. "And you believe this woman is intent on that?"

Davy shook his head. "I know not. But given the fact that she will not get what she's after with ease… She might just do that. It will be easier to do away with Lilly, once everyone she loves is gone."

The younger Jones swallowed hard. "And just what is she after? Do you know?"

"Isn't it obvious?" He leaned in. "She waited hundreds of years, found a young girl with magic, someone whom she thought would be her peer, then became pregnant, gave the other girl back to conceal her uniqueness… Now she's back… and she wants her, let's call them, 'daughters', back with her." He grabbed the rum. "She wants her perfect little family of magical women. Should shards of glass find their ways into Emma's and Elsa's hearts, they will forget all there is to remember about the people who truly love them. And that, Killian, includes you."

Killian closed his eyes. "She wants Emma."

"That she does."

"How do you know all this?"

"I've been haunted by a curse this woman and the Dark One cast on me to silence the real cause behind the deaths of the king and queen. Believe me, I have more than enough reason to have learned about her mission. The Dark One knew about the mirror… he wanted it, so he betrayed her. But nevertheless, she never forgot. She keeps Elsa's sister captive and…"

"Wait… Elsa's sister… The princess Anna?" Killian gasped. "I saved her life once! From Dreamshade poisoning intended for King Hans."

"Aye, well… She is trapped."

Killian shook his head. "Another urn…"

"No." Davy dropped his voice low. "The mirror."

Killian's blood froze. "The mirror…"

"Aye."

Hook stood up and rubbed his beard with his right hand, pacing the room. "And I presume the only way of getting her out would be to smash it, thus releasing this blasted curse upon mankind."

"Now you're getting it." Davy smiled. "But there was word of one that would come, one with a soul so pure it could dissolve the power of the mirror by simply touching its glass…"

Killian squeezed his eyes shut. "My daughter."

"This…" Davy stood up. "Is the reason WHY I left you when I did, Killian. Both the Dark One and the Snow Queen knew of this prophecy: The son of the Jones family, the youngest and most cunning, would father this child. He wanted you on my cursed vessel…. So you'd be another ghost on the Flying Dutchman." He approached his son. "Your daughter would have never been born."

Killian turned to him, his eyes gazing into his father's. "Is there no way we could even try to…?"

Davy nodded. "Aye… there is." He spun around the table, sitting back down. "Before I was condemned by the Viceroy of Arendelle, I had a home and a title; Jones Mannor; a grand house that had been in the Jones family for at least seven generations." He took a swig from the rum. "It was there that your brother was born…"

"Liam." Killian finally smiled.

"During one of my earlier travels, I came upon a relic of unfathomable power, one that, were it to fall into the wrong hands, would wield terrible, terrible magic. I was commissioned by the King and Queen to keep it hidden, for no one would suspect a navy officer to be the keeper of a legendary magical object. It is an artifact that contains within it the power of endless generations of wizards." He tapped his finger on the table. "If we were to have it in our possession, we would have leverage against her…."

Killian leaned forward. "And just what is this article?"

Davy licked his lips. "The sorcerer's hat."

The younger Jones nodded. "Aye… aye, she spoke to us of it. Told us that the blasted hat can take away the power of the most powerful wizard. She said that were we to use it on Lilly, she'd leave her alone…"

Davy Jones laughed.

"Pray tell where the joke within my words lies!" Killian snarled.

"Oh, Killian…" Davy sighed with a huge smile on his face. "It's just how cunning her wit is and how little you know of it! Had you done as she had said, the hat would not only have absorbed Lilly's power…. It would have killed her."

"What?"

"Aye. The hat sucks in not only the magic of the sorcerer… but the sorcerer himself. More that a thousand magic wielders have been unlawfully absorbed into the hat... with no hope of ever returning to the flesh."

Killian huffed and thought for a few seconds. "Very well…" He looked from under his brow. "I suppose we… have to move to Arendelle to find this… mansion of yours. I suspect this vessel to have the capacity to cross realms without the need for a portal…"

"Aye, it does… but there is no need…"

"No?"

Jones senior pressed his lips together and shook his head. "Ney. I was officially killed by your mentor, the Captain who took you and Liam under his wing; I remain alive due only to the curse, but all my earthly possessions were passed on to my wife, and as she too passed, the manor became Liam's. Alas… he too died a young death. Thus, Jones Manor is yours, Killian. And as such, the moment everyone returned through a curse to this town of yours, it brought everything that belonged to anyone involved back with it."

"Wait…" Killian raised his hand. "This means that, should we succeed and the Dark One is able to undo the curse… you will…?"

"Die. Yes." Davy affirmed with a sigh. "And it'll be a bloody relief. Being cursed to remain in that bloody ship for all times and only able to dock every seventh year is worse than death. Trust me… it's long overdue."

Killian swallowed a hard knot; despite the anger he felt towards his warped childhood and the fact that he had been abandoned by this man, the notion of his father, his only relative, would be dead as soon as the whole game with the Snow Queen was finished, managed to touch a corner of his heart he never thought would even be touched again.

"Are you well, Captain?"

Killian huffed and nodded. "Aye…" He stood up and scratched the back of his ear. "So does this mean that… I've… property?" Killian sneered, confused. "Here in Storybrooke?"

"I was not always a pirate, you know." Davy grinned and drank more rum. "The relic is there, hidden in a place within the manor, only I know where…."

Killian looked into his father's eyes, for the first time wondering whether or not he would have stayed with him, had he not been cursed. What would his life had been if he had had a chance to grow in that manor?

"So… our stratagem will be to… retrieve the gadget and perhaps try to use it on her?"

Davy nodded. "Perhaps not use it; it would mean her death and besides, only a white wizard can use it. It would, however, give her pause." He called Killian forth with his hand and Killian leaned forward as Davy lowered his voice. "Your Dark One, the one who replaced my foe, cannot know of this. This hat, Killian, contains power the likes few of us will ever hear of. We must create a separate diversion, one that may allow us to retrieve the box containing the hat, and one that will make the rest of them distract the Snow Queen as we do."

"You're mad!" Killian stood up again. "I will not submit my friends and family to the possibility of death so we can cloak our enterprise! My wife is with child, have you not been listening?"

"She would come with us. Like I said to you…" He raised an eyebrow, just like his son. "Tis not any other wizard that can use it. Only she should have control over it. She is the white witch, she has light magic…"

"And what of the Nolans? The Queen, the thief and his son… even Belle! Are we to risk their lives just so the bloody Crocodile doesn't know of this relic? No. We all discuss the plan, we all work together. We collect the object, we give my daughter a fighting chance… and we do it all together…"

"Aye?" Davy grinned sadly. "As your wife said, as a family?" Killian stood speechless, unable to look at his father. Davy licked the corner of his lip and shook his head. "He will want it, Killian, mark my words. After all is said and done, the Dark One is and always will be the Dark One. They cannot ever be trusted." He approached Killian. "The hunger for power in every Dark One is the stuff of legend; We both know… he was capable of slaying his own wife…"

Killian's scorn deepened. "You know of that?"

"Like I told you…" He sighed. "There's not a single day that went by, I didn't watch over you. I only thought it was the same wretched demon who cursed me that took the life of your loved one. But it goes to show: The Dark One is a corruptible being, one that yearns and covets for malice and power. Killian, heed my words: He must NOT learn of this trinket's whereabouts."

Hook took a deep breath and nodded.

"Aye, I know the scale and reach of his power and the evils it has caused… I know, and should he stray from his path, we shall deal with it, but for now... we all need to work together… whether we can stomach him or not." Killian swallowed. "So very well, we must find a way to obtain it without his knowing. There is a reason that hat came to be in your possession: It was meant to come our way, so it would remain in the Jones family… with Emma as its guardian. I see that now."

"So, given that you and this particular imp have spent centuries feuding, how would you suggest we go about his meddling?"

Killian shook his head. "We're currently on a truce, but I have a feeling he will sense we are up to something. I suggest we give him a task, something involving magic…" he flourished his hand. "He does have a rather strong flair for the dramatic, so perhaps… he can go to find the mirror and keep her busy while we… obtain the relic." He shrugged. "He's rather fond of menacing banter and such like, he will keep her entertained. Perhaps he can take Regina and elsa along; if anyone in town has magical prowess aside from him, it's those two. They'll keep her busy."

Davy laughed. "Quite a skilled move; we may even get an advantage that way…"

"Indeed." Killian smiled fully.

"You have my wits." Davy nodded.

Killian nodded back. "And quite fortunately for me, my mother's devilishly dashing looks."

"And for that… I am deeply grateful."

Hook held his stare and swallowed. "I don't… remember her… my mother." What was she like?"

The captain of the Flying Dutchman nodded. "You must know… I may have wronged her, but if I did, it was because of the same reason I wronged you. And I have carried the curse on my shoulders without complaint… as punishment." He looked at the table. "She was a kindly young lady, with a laugh that would carry for miles and hair like ebony." He looked into his son's eyes. "Save for your eyes, you captured her face, Killian, and made it your own."

Killian felt himself grin unavoidably. "Aye… and you seem to… well…" He shrugged and looked down sheepishly. "My brother…"

"Liam…"

"He looked… exactly like you."

Davy licked his lips. "Aye… my first born." He looked back up into Killian's eyes. "Killian… for what it's worth… I want you to know that I am indeed very, very sorry for having left you. Your anger is understandable, but so was my motivation. You must know that."

Killian held his stare and exhaled a deep breath. "Aye… I do now. Alas… What's done is done." He grinned at his father and swallowed. "It has taken me aches to become the man I am today, mate. I've worked to change; I had thought I'd shamed my own code by becoming… well, you... you. I have no intention of regressing. But perhaps in all fairness…" He shrugged and smirked. "Being a pirate is not necessarily a bad thing, particularly a charming one, like meself."

Davy looked at his son and felt a sudden gush of pride flood him as he grinned. "Right you are, mate. Right you are. Very well. Now… have you any thoughts as to how we might sneak back through the town unseen and attain the relic?"

A lip and an eyebrow rose on the face of Killian Jones. "We have an Evil Queen… Quite adept at cloaking spells…"

"And what shall we tell the imp? Regarding our particular quest…"

Killian smiled fully. "We don't have to. As far as he knows, we're creating diversions while Henry and Lilly destroy that blasted mirror, wherever it is. Let's just see it done and then we'll deal with Rumplestiltskin."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Ingrid, the Snow Queen, paced through her white temp home in the cave in the forest; it was easy for her to look out into the world through her cursed mirror, a magic so powerful and dark, only she was capable of wielding it; to say Rumple feared it already meant a great deal.

But for the life of her, she had waited days… and not a sign of the Jones family, their friends, or their daughter was to be found.

She knew now she would have to start broadening her horizons.

She flicked one hand and soon enough, she was dressed in more mundane clothing; she flicked it again, and suddenly looked like a completely different person. She looked at her modified self in the mirror and sighed. "Such a waste of a face…" And with a grin, she turned and made her way out of her cave.

She would find the Jones girl before she stopped her plans.

And with her out of the way, she'd be able to reset Emma's memories… and her family would be complete.

No one would save the savior.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Hendy, hurry up!" Lilly called her brother from the sled.

The rock troll king approached the sleigh with Kristoff and Henry. "Remember… use the potions given to you by your mother only… and only, if you know she can see you."

"How will we know she's watching?" Henry shrugged.

Pabbie looked up into the sky and smiled. "The stars favor us, lad. Your family knows that they have to create a diversion to keep her gaze on them; as far as she knows, they hid your sister in their own realm. Now…" He looked back at Henry. "It will be cold in that place, colder than you've ever felt."

Henry smiled. "A Castle made of ice? Sounds logical."

"It isn't just the ice…" Kristoff sighed. "It's embedded with her soul. She is heartless. You MUST be as quick as you can be, or she will be back in there with you within seconds."

"HENDYYY!"

Henry turned to Lilly. "Sis, can you hold on? Important strategy details being arranged here."

"Ugh…" Lilly shook her head and climbed down from the sled. "Look!" she tugged on her brother's trousers.

Henry looked at his sister. "Lilly, really?"

"Look!" She grinned and held her little hand open. Before henry's bewildered stare, a swirling surge of white light turned into a sphere on her hand.

"Holy crap…" He whispered as Lilly calmly grinned at him.

Pabbie smiled. "This is indeed a special child. No witch her age has ever been able to conjure a seeing sphere… come, look…"

Henry and Kristoff looked into the sphere and images of the people they loved, their family, were visible; Killian kissing Emma's forehead, Regina discussing plans with Rumplestiltskin, Belle intently discussing over a text with who he assumed was Killian's father (must have been the eyes), Robin trying to get little Roland to sleep, Gramps sharpening his sword and Snow keeping an eye on Neal… and tightening the string of her bow.

Lilly laughed. "See? All is good."

And the image disappeared from her little hand as she produced a toothy grin for her brother. "We go now."

Henry and Pabbie grinned, and Henry turned to him with a huff. "I… cant thank you for your hospitality these last few days, Grand Pabbie."

"Dank you!" Lilly nodded adamantly.

The king of the rock trolls nodded kindly. "You and your family are welcome any time… you are special folk, don't you forget it. Now, Henry…" He nodded. "Take heed: Only an act of the trues, purest love, can thaw a frozen heart. Should your mother fall… not even your sister will be able to heal her, for indeed, her entire magic could very well be depleted by touching the mirror."

Henry smiled. " My mother has insurance."

"How so?"

Henry leaned over and whispered into the Troll King's ear. Grand Pabbie smiled. "Aye… aye that will aid her for sure!" he turned to Kristoff. "Take them safely my boy."

"! Will. Thank you, Grand Pabbie." Kristoff grinned and placed a hand on Henry's shoulder. "Ready when you are."

The sled left in silence and under the shroud of night; the soft grind of the snow and the sled was surpassed only by the sound of Sven's grunting efforts as he tugged them all up north. The snowfall was silent, and Henry thought of Christmas eve and the quiet peace of the gentle flakes as they touched the surface of his hair, skin and nose. He turned to look at Lilly who had nodded off beside him, tucked under a thick blanket. Her hair had grown at least an inch and she was indeed looking more and more like a miniature Killian Jones each passing day. He smiled and cuddled up beside her as Kristoff gave him an approving nod.

They'd reach the mountain just after dawn.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Emma knew better than to try and double cross Gold, but she figured Killian had a point in saying that she was meant to guard that blasted hat. That article was, perhaps, their only guaranteed weapon against the Snow Queen, and even if she knew she'd probably kill her if she turned the hat on her, Emma preferred to risk Ingrid's head than to wait another day for Lilly to be discovered.

It was a last resort, but one she'd not be afraid to take.

She and Killian were preparing to find this mansion of his, in the quarters given to them by the captain; Regina would accompany Gold to try and find the opposing mirror. The Nolans plus Robin Hood would carry their burden to patrol the town while Belle had been assigned to remain in the ship, unseen, with the young prince and little Roland.

"So… did you guys… talk?" Emma spoke gingerly as she packed a small satchel with things she could likely use in the event they were caught by the Snow Queen.

Killian huffed. "We had to, didn't we? Otherwise how would we have come to elaborate this scheme now, Swan?"

She turned to him, lips pressed. "You know what I mean."

Hook sighed, his shoulders dropping as he looked down at her hands. "Aye, well… what is there to talk about? The man didn't have much of a choice, if he had…" He grinned and grabbed her hands in his own. "Then we never would have met. Lilly would have never been born and… well, I suppose it's was all just meant to be."

"Killian, look…" Emma huffed, interlacing her fingers in his. "I know. I know the logic behind this whole argument, the whole 'oh, they had to do it to save me and save our future and give me my best chance', and yeah, they're right. They did the right thing" She raised her face to hers with her other hand. "But it still doesn't erase the fact that it hurts like hell. You and I grew up alone, feeling…" she shrugged. "…unwanted and unloved. So for what it's worth, I think you're being very brave, letting yourself talk to him. Because I know how much it hurts. And I know the questions in your head and heart."

Killian sighed and nodded. "Seems you're the only one who does…" He leaned in and kissed her briefly and gently with a grin. "I always knew it."

"I told you we understood each other." She smiled back.

"Aye, but you knew nothing about me then. And neither did I about you, so…"

"Yep. And therefore… Meant to be. Again. Dammit." She laughed.

Killian smiled broadly. "Oh… there it is."

"What?"

He mused her hair behind her ear. "That smile of yours… laughter. Seems rather scarce these days."

She grinned sadly. "I miss them, Killian."

He nodded and wrapped her in his arms. "As do I, darling. But if we do this right, we'll be together again in no time."

"Yeah. So I suppose we have to thank Mr. Jones, and my mom and dad for… dumping our butts out as kids…" She cackled.

"He laughed with her and kissed her head. "Aye. That we do. But now…" He released her and turned to put on his jacket. "Let's just get this deed done and finish this unholy mess so we can get the children back home."

"Ok…"

Davy Jones entered the room after a quick tap "So… I have set course back to anchor in Storybrooke. The Dutchman shall remain out of sight, but as soon as we set foot on the pier, I fear we shall lose our invisibility cloak." He turned to Emma. "Milady, have you any clue where we might find a manor the likes of the one your husband has already spoken of to you?"

Emma nodded. "Yeah, actually, there's one that comes to mind." Killian shot his eyes up to her as she continued. "My dad and I made a census and found some four houses that seemed to be uninhabited. One of them was actually… quite large. Up the hill, past the place where Zelena used to live, on the Cliffside by the sea." She put her leather jacket on. "I have a gut feeling that's your pad, right there."

"Very well." Killian nodded. "So as soon as we disembark, shall we make way to your yellow vessel, love?"

"Bad idea. She knows that's mine." Emma side grinned.

Davy Jones licked his lips. "Is the place far?"

"Yep."

"So how do we…?"

"Listen…" Emma chuckled. "I wasn't ALWAYS the savior. I know how to highjack a car."

Killian laughed. "Like I said before, Swan, I always knew you had a little pirate in you."

She turned to him with a wink. "Yep. And that' s quite literal too right now."

The couple exchanged a sighing smile before following the elder Jones out of the ship. The town lights were visible under the cloak of snow that had fallen during the last few days.

Emma sneered. "We might need better jackets…" she snapped her fingers and instantly, she had clad her husband, father-in-law and herself, in thicker clothing. "There. These will do."

They were joined on the deck by her parents, Regina, Rumple and Robin. All instantly donned equally thick jackets.

"So much for good taste.." Regina huffed, before turning to Emma. "So, where do you suppose this woman is hauled?"

"My guess? The woods." Emma shrugged. "That's where Elsa and I found her."

Elsa (the only one happy not to be wearing a thick jacket) placed a hand on Emma's shoulder. "We will get your daughter back… and when we do and the Queen is powerless, I will also learn what became of Anna." She smiled and looked down. "I… have no words to thank you… for all you've done."

Emma grinned. "Well, thanks to you, our kids are safe. That bean was your ticket back home."

"We'll find a way." Elsa smiled before hugging Emma, who hugged her back with a friendly smile.

"Ok, so what exactly do we do now?" David sighed, hands on his hips.

Emma nodded. "You go to the Sheriff station; there will be MANY complaints in the message machine. Also you might want to set up a meeting with the dwarves, granny, Ruby, the fairies…" Emma huffed. "We need all the help we can get."

"And us?" Rumple huffed. "I can't but feel curious as to why the three of you would be venturing up to the house on the hill where we have to do other less enjoyable activities."

Emma paced to Rumple. "You, Regina and Elsa are the best we have when it comes to magic. If there is another end to the mirror, it's bound to be in her hideout. And so is she." She shrugged. "You're our best shot. As for the manor…"

"There is a chance she will seek us out there." Davy Jones huffed. "That was my home, I'm part of her bloody curse. Not to mention…" He paced to the Dark One. "She has a thing for mirrors… and if there's anything abundant in that house… it's mirrors."

"Very well…" Mr. Gold mumbled, not entirely convinced but visibly satisfied for the time being.

The ship moored just before dawn.

The party disembarked, with Gold kissing his young wife goodbye as she remained, teary eyed, taking care of the little royal and Robin's boy.

True to her word, Emma found a car, a Chevy. Davy Jones nearly barfed en route to the manor. Twice they got stuck in slush and ice but made it to the top of the hill within twenty minutes.

"Bloody hell…" Killian huffed. "That's a bloody mansion…"

"Wow…" Emma smiled.

The house was a massive, Tudor-style home with what seemed to be neatly kept gardens in between very tall, black lampposts which somehow seemed to function on gas rather than electricity; whoever had been doing the gardening was a mystery until Mr. Jones explained that together with his curse, the staff at the manor had been damned to remain invisible, but were still active at work. As they parked around the curb, Emma huffed. "That's… quite a house."

"Ten bedrooms, a ball room, six balconies, three terraces, eight lavatories, library…" Davy smiled. "I didn't allow my family to want."

Killian grunted.

Emma cleared her throat.

"Very well, let's just… get this done, shall we?" Ho. "ok huffed as he let himself out the door.

Davy shook his head. Emma turned around and looked at him. "He didn't only get your eyes, but also your utter lack of tact."

"Look, Milady, I know Killian deserved better than what he got but…"

"We both get it!" she huffed, placing a hand on the back of her seat. "I have a baby brother, who is getting EVERYTHING I never got from my parents. I grew up in the system, jumping from one place to another, but hell, it had to be done, right? I understand that now, but that doesn't change the fact that I missed it all and he's getting it and…"

"M… Milady?" Davy sneered, looking at her hand.

In the place where she was touching the seat, she had burned a hand shaped figure. Emma sneered and removed her hand. "What the hell…?"

Davy sighed. "I'd keep my resentment and anger in check, mam. Magic is a powerful thing… but none I've ever seen that have it, do well with it, except you. Best stay that way." He let himself out the car and joined his son at the front door, while Emma frowned, looking at the palm of her hand.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

David went directly to the sheriff's station. it remained locked and dark, but he instantly switched the power on and got started on the messages and calls. All seemed to be about lack of power on some sides of town… others spoke about the freak blizzards. "This is gonna take me the whole night…" he huffed as he picked up the phone and began to return calls.

Rumple and Regina followed Elsa to the area where she had almost witnessed Killian's death, and was able to hear Mr. Gold whisper something about how he had wished to see that under his breath.

As soon as they reached the area, Gold was instantly drawn to the feel of magic stemming from a cave. Regina agreed, and the three followed.

"Good thing Miss Swan gave us these jackets…" Regina huffed. "I gotta say, she's impressed me a bit these days."

"Oh, you're friends now, how heartwarming." Gold grinned, "Now the two of you can build snowmen together."

"Listen, can we just… see if we can find the other mirror?" Elsa rolled her eyes.

"No need." Rumple stood coldly, his face staring in the direction of a magnificent mirror embedded in silver filigree, simply floating over the ground.

"Well, doesn't this beat all…"? Regina smiled, approaching it.

Rumple clucked his teeth as he grabbed her by her arm. "I'd think twice before doing that, dearie. Even if this is only a twin copy, this is no mirror you can command around. This…" He turned to look at them. "Will inevitably show you the darkest, most terrible parts of your own heart, to the point where you could turn against us… and yourself." He grinned. "Let's just say, you and miss Swan would never get to build that snowman."

The muffled sound of a voice made them all turn. Elsa and Regina prepped their hands; frosty flakes adorned Elsa's fingers and a fire ball crowned Regina's palm, while Rumple hesitantly walked towards the source of the sound.

To their shock and horror, they found a young girl, gagged and bound, and damn near frozen to death. Regina and Rumple exchanged a concerned look. Rumple picked the girl up. "I'll take her and the mirror back to the vessel; Regina, find Snow, before everything is ruined. Elsa, you find Emma and the pirates and tell them we've been set up. She's on to us!" With a single poof, mirror, girl and Gold disappeared.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Snow went straight to Granny's. The place looked empty at first sight, but as soon as she pushed the door open, at least ten familiar faces turned to look at her. And then a collective cheer as the dwarves circled her. "Sister, thank god you're safe!" grumpy smiled. "This is crazy, snow has been falling non-stop and…"

"Grumpy.." Snow sat beside him with a smile. "I need you to tell me everything…" She sighed. "Have you seen her? The Snow Queen?"

The short man huffed with disdain. "Only your buddy Elsa…"

"No, I'm talking about Sarah Fischer, the lady from the ice cream parlor…"

Doc cut in. "She… caused all this?"

"Yeah. She wants Emma and Elsa for some… sick, twisted family thing and…" She sighed. "She wants to kill Lilly. My granddaughter."

The sound of breaking glass made Snow turn her head. Ruby stood there after having dropped the coffee jug. "She… wants to kill a baby girl?" she said, horrified.

Snow turned to her friend and after hugging her, took her by the shoulders. "Ruby, my granddaughter is much, much more than just an ordinary little girl. She can put a stop to her. And to this… winter and her plans… We just need to give her a chance. I need your help. All of you."

"We are at your service, Highness." Sneezy smiled.

Then he sneezed.

"We need to create a diversion, to draw the Snow Queen's gaze towards us."

Granny huffed. "So, what do we do, streak naked around town?"

"UGH! That would avert her gaze." Grumpy sneered at the old woman.

"No, just… go about our business as usual, maybe even… I don't know, Granny, you have your crossbow?"

Granny winked. "Under the bar."

"It's almost full moon, Ruby, you and Granny could stand guard, sniff her out!"

Ruby grinned. "I'm your gal!"

"And us?" grumpy shrugged.

Snow sighed and approached Grumpy. "You go around town… tell everyone that there is a new foe; and that it is NOT Elsa, but the Snow Queen. Tell them what I told you now. But for the LOVE OF GOD, don't… shout it out like the morning herald, you got it?"

Grumpy nodded. "We're on it, sister."

Snow sat down on a booth and Ruby paced to her. "We may be under three feet of snow, but we still have the best cocoa in the state."

Snow shook her head. "No, thanks, Red. Not in the mood." She looked at Ruby. "My daughter and the pirate…"

"I know… they had to hide her. I was here, remember?"

Snow frowned. "Really? I remember Granny was here, but…"

"Well, you were very distraught." Ruby smiled and reached to grab Snow's hands. "But I'm sure that, wherever she is, she is fine."

Snow nodded. "Yeah. Thank Elsa for that." She shook her head. "Had it not been for her magic bean, she could have found us."

Ruby leaned forward. "And where is Lilly now?"

"I don't know. Elsa wouldn't tell us. For her safety."

"Clever girl."

"Yeah."

"And how is little Henry taking it?

Snow smiled and shook her head. "he's not so little, he…" Her smile disappeared. "Wait a minute… didn't you say you were here when we…?"

Snow looked down at her hands, still held by Ruby's… and saw in horror that they were turning blue.

She stood up in a jolt and had her bow and arrow ready to fire at the waitress. "WHERE THE HELL IS RUBY?!"

She stood up and through a flurry of white, the image of ruby disappeared to reveal Ingrid.

"Oh my… You are far smarter than I thought!" She smiled, walking around the diner under the pointed arrow of snow and now Granny's crossbow. "You would think I had no idea about the boy that guards the little girl, but now, thanks to you, I know that wherever I find the boy, I will find the girl. I just needed to know what he looked like, and there were plenty of images of him at the Jones place. Sentimentality has proven their weakness. Now… where exactly would I find Elsa, so she could perhaps provide me with the exact location of the children?"

"Nowhere you will be finding her any time soon!" Regina's voce came from the middle of the room. She paced to the snow Queen. "Did you know… that fire can actually melt ice?"

Ingrid smiled. "I actually froze you. Impressive, what this little girl can do."

"You haven't seen what I can do, snowflake." Regina grinned. "And you owe me one."

The Snow Queen smiled. "This should be fun… Sadly, I don't have time for games." She flicked her hand and before Regina could do anything, Ingrid had taken her mirror from her pocket.

"Give me my mirror, you…" Regina sneered and paced to the Snow Queen.

Ingrid raised her hand and grabbed Regina in a distant chokehold . "No."

While Snow tried to pry Regina free, Ingrid looked into the mirror. "Show me Elsa…"

The relfection changed into the vision of a house… where killian, Emma, Elsa and Davy Jones were agitatedly discussing the discovery of young Ruby in Ingrid's cave.

She closed the mirror shut.

"Thank you. That was all I needed."

As she poofed away, Regina regained her breath.

"The mansion…." Snow ran a hand through her hair. "EMMA!"

"Come on Snow, let's get out of here. Flaky there owes me a mirror…" Regina grabbed her hand and poofed them both away to the battle that was about to ensue in the Jones Manor.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

As the dawn came to Arendelle, Henry found himself falling into a strange stupor. A vision clouded his sight: His mother fighting against the Snow Queen… and getting frozen in Killian's arms. Screaming… crying… and the sudden sight of the woman getting sucked into the mirror.

"No!" He opened his eyes and found himself on Kristoff sled.

"Hey there, prince… what did you see?" Kristoff smiled.

"She's on to us…" Henry huffed. "We have to hurry!"

Lilly sat up and nodded. "No time, any time Go Sven, go!" she leaned forward and touching the reindeer, she gave him an extra jolt of energy, making the sled go faster than Kristoff had ever been able to before.

They reached the mountain within ten minutes.


	36. The Ice Castle

The entrance to the mansion was surrounded by hedges, trimmed and prim, and all around the front lawn, rose bushes adorned the entry. The knocker on the door read clear as day: Jones.

"Cedar…" Killian whispered, his hand gingerly touching the wooden door.

"Aye… and with a blood spell." Davy nodded. "Only those of the family lineage may open it."

Emma turned to look at Killian's father. "You… have magic?"

"Not I, per say." He shrugged. "But when I brought the relic back for safe keeping, a local sorceress cast a spell so no one would try to rob it and make use of it. Thus, she cast as spell where only those of the Jones blood may open this door." He turned to look at Killian. "So, if you'd do us the honors, Captain…"

"How?" Killian frowned.

"Tap on it three times." Jones senior grinned confidently.

Killian sighed deeply and turned with a scorn to the door. "Very well…" He tapped three times and sure enough, the locks and latches gave and the door opened.

The trio entered; Emma looked happily curious; Killian looked around the foyer, not knowing whether to feel awed by the magnificence of the house or sad to have missed out on belonging to such a grand family, and Davy looked, well, like a person who had come home after a long, long trip. He looked around, a giant smile crossing his face from ear to ear and reaching his eyes, which shone through their crinkly commissures. "It… it looks exactly the way it looked in my memories." A soft, wispy chuckle left his lips. "My dear late wife and I… we worked so hard for this… planned so much. So many memories…"

Killian sighed and sat down on the third step of the main staircase. "Aye, well… let's just… find the bloody magic hat and go back to the ship, then, shall we?"

"Come on Killian, take a look around, you have to admit, this is a hell of a place…" Emma smiled. "Seriously, look at that chandelier, and… oh, that mirror!" she smiled excitedly as she stared at the massive mirror that hung facing the door. "Totally not feng-shui, but, man!"

Davy swallowed. "And if only we could light up the candles and lamps, you'd see just how…" Emma waved her hand. Instantly, the chandeliers lit up and every corner of the manor came alight. Even Killian's uninterested gaze was suddenly gawking in awe at the surroundings. Davy laughed softly. "Much better. Thank you my dear." He gave a gentle nod of acknowledgement to Emma.

Killian's gaze was suddenly fixed on one point. "Oh… bloody hell…" he stood up from the step and walked to a large mantelpiece. There was a painting there, of a young man, no older than maybe fifteen… but who carried an eerie resemblance to the Jones elder. "Liam…"

Davy nodded. "Aye. Liam David Jones the third."

Killian turned to his father with a sneer. "David? His name was David?"

"This family is a Dynasty, Killian." He nodded with a sad smile. "A seafaring one. My father, David Jones the first, your grandfather, was also Lord Commodore for the fleet of Arendelle. I too was Lord Commodore… and Liam would have been, too… had he not…" Davy swallowed and looked down.

Emma turned her gaze to Killian; his jaw was set and he looked pretty much like she had felt in the car, minutes earlier, while talking about her baby brother, and how he was getting everything she had missed out on.

Her heart squeezed in her chest for her husband… but also for his father.

"You… saw him? When he passed away?" Killian swallowed.

"Aye…"

"How?"

Davy licked his lips. "The one concession the Dark One made for the Flying Dutchman was a magic spyglass. While the curse prevented me from shoring until every seventh year, through it's gaze I could see anything, any place I wanted. I watched Liam grow and rebel against me and my name; I saw him turn his back on his heritage… and I saw you, Killian, when you were born."

"What?" The younger Jones whispered.

"Aye… I still had six years before the Dutchman could anchor, and I saw how the local villagers kept you alive and fed, and as soon as I was able, I went to find you. You were about to turn seven by then. Even after I left you behind, I saw how Liam found you and made it his own hero's journey to become a brother and father to you. While my heart was broken at the hatred you both harbored for me, I was pleased to see you'd live, you'd always have each other." He paced around the room. "When your mentor, that man named Captain John Wellings, finally vanquished me, he said… and I quote him…. 'And here's to your two sons, never knowing your fate, for neither of them shall ever know their father, the disgraced officer… and a filthy pirate'…" Killian swallowed a large lump and Emma was already teary eyed. Davy smiled a sad smile. "It mattered not. He was right. It would be better if the two of you forgot about me altogether." He raised a glazed gaze and stared into Killian's eyes. "So don't believe for one minute that you were the only one to weep when Liam fell. I saw it. I saw how he collapsed on the floor and how you held him in your arms; I felt your despair, your anger… I wept too, Killian. For the loss of my newborn… and for your heartache. No healthy young son is supposed to die before his father. Alas, this curse… keeps me in wait." He paced to his son. "You may not want me to call you such, and I have respected your wish out of good form… but you ARE my son, Killian. And despite your loathing, know you always will be. Hence, all this is yours, this house, the name it carries… it is your heritage now. Do with it as you will." Killian was frozen as Davy turned and walked through the grand diner doors. "Now, let's go collect that artifact…"

Emma walked to Killian, who stared in the direction his father had walked away. "Are you ok there, pirate?" She looped her arm around his.

"I'm… not sure anymore, love…" He responded promptly.

The young savior smiled and wrapped her arms around his waist. "Well, let's look at the bright side. Plenty of room for all… Every kid gets his and her own room."

"Swan…"

"Henry always wanted a pool, I suppose there's enough space in that garden to make one."

"Emma…" Killian grabbed her by the arms. "You can't really…"

"And why not?"

"Because!" He snapped back. "This is… not me! This is not us! I…" he paced around and ran his hand through his hair. "I am not the one with the heroic past, nor am I the one who was meant to have this! You heard him Liam was his first born. This is my brother's! And he's gone, Emma, what in blazes have I bloody done to deserve this?" He turned an ached face at Emma. "I'm not… the Lord Commodore my father was before that witch and the Dark One disgraced his name, I'm not his father either, and I'm certainly NOT Liam. I'm…" He shrugged, suddenly sheepish. "Nothing, love. I was the son that happened by accident, I was a pick pocket and the scoundrel who dallied with college girls during navy academy balls and who teased the teachers, I was the unruly little bastard who got whipped and caned more often than not for mischief and insubordination and… and I was the one who turned away from good form to become a pirate. And as such, I did the most unfathomable deeds, Emma, most of which I will never speak of while you and my children live, out of respect…" he paced back to her and held her hands. "I am blessed enough that you took me in, I am fortunate to call you my wife, to have had a lovely child and raise your boy and… and to have another one on the way, I'm not even worth all this trouble, I don't know why you…"

"OK, ENOUGH!" Emma shouted back at him. "Look I can see you're on a really, really pathetic self-loathing roll here, but I'm going to be really damn bold and interrupt you, so just shut up, ok?" She huffed. "Killian what the hell! Yeah you're a pirate! Yeah, you messed up, you did things you regret, and made more than a few wrong choices! But you know, so did I! I was a pirate too! Remember? I stole a car and I am still driving it! I cheated, I shoplifted, hell, you know the story about the cat, right? And I was a pickpocket too! But you told me once to stop judging myself, and you were right, because I am NOT defined by that. I am not the woman I was then. And you? You are also the man who turned his vessel back to take us all to find Henry. You had the damn bean, you didn't have to! But you did. You're the guy who saved a guy from Pan even when you knew he was Henry's dad and was likely gonna fight to win me back; you're the guy who traded his precious goddamned ship to find me in New York, the same guy who travelled back in time just to be with me and who never, ever leaves my side, whether we're fighting some villain or just… because that's where you belong. And you're the father of my daughter and being a father for Henry, and you know, I can't tell you how much THAT means to me!" She drew breath and paced closer to him. "You told me once… that my magic was a part of me and that I should embrace it, that you love every part of it, and of me, the good and the bad… remember that? Remember when I didn't want to celebrate my birthday ever, because it was also the day I gave Henry away, and how?" Killian nodded. "Well…" She smiled softly, lowering her voice. "I'm not planning on ever giving up on you. You're a beautiful man, Killian. And if only you gave yourself a chance to see that, the way I see it, you might think a bit differently about that dumb pirate of mine. Hey…" She chased his eyes with hers until their gazes locked. "You know, my family, we're all about… second chances. I gave my parents one… Henry gave me one… Then they all decided to give you your second chance, and so did I… Try it, Killian. It's liberating." She kissed his cheek. "How about you give my pirate his second chance? And I quote my husband, let me see if I get this right: 'I never again want to hear such a vile utterance about the man I love'. Are we clear on that, Hook?"

Killian stared intently into her eyes, and a slow grin slowly rose on the edges of his lips as he held her close to him. "Spoken from the mouth of an angel…"

"Look, I can see this is a little… overwhelming and yeah, that does mess with your mind, believe me, I've been there, from zero to hero…" She chuckled. "But life is giving you something, Killian."

"Aye… a bloody big house." He laughed.

Emma's face fell. "No. A father, Killian."

"Well, best not get too attached to that one, love." He pushed past her, following the steps of Davy.

Emma frowned. "What? What do you mean?"

Killian stopped cold and huffed, closing his eyes. "After we're done defeating the Snow Queen, his deal with Gold was for his curse to be broken. Emma…" He looked back up to her eyes. "The only reason he's here, alive… is because of that very curse. My mentor, Captain Wellings, defeated him long ago, while I was still in the academy. He's been dead for three hundred years. He, the Flying Dutchman…they're practically ghosts." He looked to the floor. "As soon as the curse breaks, he will be gone for good. Like everyone in my family." He shook his head. "And what do I have to account for my lineage? A bloody manor? Well…" He shook his head. "Thank you, love… But I don't want it. My family is you now; you, Lilly, Henry and our wee one, and our small abode overlooking the shore, where I can hear the waves and the birds. It may be small, Emma, but it is ours. I want nothing more."

He pushed past her again and left Emma saddened, staring at him with a mortified wince.

Now that was something she hadn't experienced: Getting a family and losing it again. Oh, wait… yeah. Yeah she had felt it too! The day she got sent out of Storybrooke and everyone, pirate included, went back to the Enchanted Forest.

But then, she had gotten them back; As soon as Davy Jones ceased to be, it would be forever.

Killian was to lose his father for the second time… and there was nothing to be done.

She was at a loss for words, so she simply caught up with him and grabbed his hand. In exchange, he turned a saddened gaze and a warm smile that while beautiful, didn't quite reach his eyes.

They turned from the foyer, though a grand dining room and into a small study, facing a vast and beautiful garden. Davy Jones sat on a couch, and raised his face expectantly at his son. "Are you two quite done?"

"Let's get on with it." Killian sighed. "Where is the bloody thing?"

Davy sighed and stood up, tapped the wooden wall behind him three times and turned to the couple with a very trademark Jones smirk. "It's all three taps, Killian. Everything you need is three taps away."

A small pigeon hole opened on the wall where his hand had tapped and revealed a rather intricate box, with a starred pattern on the rounded top over a blue backdrop and golden rimming. Davy took it in his hand and grinned. "Last time I ever held this in my hand was also the last time I ever set foot in this house…" He raised his eyes to Emma and held his hand out to her. "Here, my dear. You be the keeper of it. But be weary of it; do not forget: it is designed to contain magic… and the magician. Be sure never, ever to hold the open end of the hat to yourself or anyone else with magic, lest it be your very last resource."

"Are you… sure I'm the right person to… do this?" Emma sneered.

Davy turned his eyes to Killian. "If he trusts you…" He then turned back to Emma and winked. "…then I do, too." He handed her the box.

Emma took it hesitantly and grinned back at Davy.

"So… shall we head back to the vessel now?" Killian said, rubbing his temple. "We've a daughter and a son to retrieve…"

They were all headed back out the main door when Elsa joined them.

"EMMA! We must leave! NOW!"

"How… did you find us?" Emma frowned.

Elsa shook her head. "Your friend Regina poofed me here, but that's really NOT important right now, Emma, we have to leave this place right now!"

"Why the haste, love?" Killian sneered.

"Because…" Elsa tried to catch her own breath. "We found the mirror in her cave… but that's not all we found." She swallowed hard. "Emma, your family is in danger, your mother, the town…"

Emma walked to Elsa and took her by the shoulders. "Slow down, Elsa, what do you mean, the town? My mother?" What?"

Elsa sighed. "We found a young woman, one of your friends. The wolf girl, Ruby." Elsa swallowed. "She was nearly unconscious… We believe that the Snow Queen kept her there to impersonate her, which means…"

"Mary Margaret's probably spilling the beans to her right now…" Emma ran a hand through her hair. "Shit!"

"So let's find her before she does!" Davy paced to the door.

No sooner had he finished talking, a swirling flurry revealed the image of Ingrid.

"Don't bother, Captain Jones. I am here." She smiled coldly, turning to him. "My, my. The years haven't done much to ruin your youthfulness, Lord Commodore. You are as handsome today as the day you sank the vessel with my sister and her husband…"

"You and I know damn well I had nothing to do with that…" Davy sneered.

"Well, it matters not." Ingrid sighed as she turned to look at Emma and Elsa. "Non-magical folk will never understand us. They leave us… put us in urns and forget about us."

Elsa paced to her. "I placed myself in that urn voluntarily. What do you want?"

"The two of you of course." Ingrid shrugged softly. "Unfortunately, you're both a little reluctant to see the truth. I do believe that hiding things in plain sight has done a hell of a job on you." She turned to Emma. "You were always special, Emma…"

"Yeah, sure. Special enough to dump me back."

"Well… I was excited. Having my own baby girl." She turned to Elsa with a grin. "I take it the cat's out of the bag by now."

"You may have given birth to me." Elsa replied, her voice shaky. "But it was not you who raised me. My mother was…"

"YOUR MOTHER WAS A THIEF! AND A LIAR!" Ingrid shouted back. "She… took you from me. Why? Because I was a monster! She never accepted me, she was the one to help the Dark One! How do you think I wound up in the urn to begin with? The Dark One betrayed me in exchange for my sister's complicity, so he would get the mirror. That way… she got you."

"You're a liar…" Elsa shook her head.

"I am telling you the truth." She turned to Emma. "And you? The savior? The one whose parents gave up on so easily?"

"Emma, love, don't you listen to her." Killian hissed.

"You must be angry with them… for leaving you."

"They had a good reason to, I know that now."

"That doesn't erase twenty eight years of feeling unwanted."

"Swan, don't listen!"

"They had choices! They could have kept you, they could have figured out something else. But no… They just… sent you here. Alone, Cold… UNWANTED."

Davy paced to Emma. "Take NO heed, milady... she's a deceiver."

"So am I to assume that YOU would have done a far better job, lady? You left me back in the orphanage!"

"And I can guarantee you… each and every child there must have humiliated you… laughed at you." Emma's eyes softened. "Yes. They did, didn't they? That's what ordinary people do. They fear us. To them, we're nothing but monsters. Freaks." She paced closer to Emma. "And when you make one little mistake, one tiny… tiny error, they give you that look, and that look stays with you forever."

Sparkles began to form in Emma's palms. "Shut up."

"You can start anew, Emma. You, me and my Elsa. You are practically sisters anyway! I was your mom. And Elsa is my child, so… it's perfect! They will let you down. Even this… man you chose to share your life with. Mortal men have shown you what they are capable of! He will leave you! Like they all did. And so will your precious family with their little baby prince, who, make no mistake, they are pleased to call NORMAL."

"SWAN, THAT'S A LIE!" Killian shouted.

"They… love… me." Emma hissed through her teeth. The lights she had lit earlier began to flicker.

"How can they possibly love that which they do not understand?" Ingrid continued. "And what they don't understand, they come to fear, and what they fear, they call a monster."

"SHUT UP!" Emma shouted suddenly, her hands firing out a gush of a shockwave that sent Killian, his father and Elsa flying. Killian crashed into a table and hit his head. As he stood up, he reached up and touched his forehead to find blood on his fingers. "Bloody hell…"

"Killian!" Emma ran to him but stopped as soon as she saw the sparkles in her hands.

He stood up, his father helping him. "I'm alright love…"

Emma snapped her face back to Ingrid. "What the hell did you do to me?"

Ingrid was smiling from ear to ear. "Only… unraveling the beauty of your potential. I could teach you so, so much…" She then turned to Elsa. But not as long as the healer is still alive. If she touches my mirror… all my magic will be gone. And I know you know where she is, Elsa…" She paced to the young Queen. "Come now… Where are the children?"

Elsa swallowed. "I understand why my mother took me from you…" She wept softly, holding her stare. "You're evil… you have corrupted, killed and taken the kindness out of those who have crossed your path, betrayed a family… and now you want to murder an innocent child?"

"Swan…" Killian paced to her, blood trickling down his temple. "Please…"

"No, Killian, stay away, I…" Emma panted. "I don't know what I can do now, I… I'm not sure I can control this…"

"Yes, you can, love, you always can." He walked to her hands up and extended. "That bloody witch just pushed all the right buttons darling, don't you dare give her a moment's thought!"

Ingrid paced slowly to Elsa. "My darling girl… you are indeed as beautiful as the snowed mountain top." She reached for her cheek. "We will be a family again. I even am willing to make a concession for you…" she flicked her hand in the direction of the grand mirror. "Look there…."

Elsa turned and saw the frozen statue of … "ANNA!" She turned to her, rabid. "You… you froze her… You froze my sister…"

"Only her body." Ingrid replied calmly. "I removed her heart before I ever did." She shrugged. "Insurance."

Elsa was sobbing and gasping. "What do you want?"

"Emma, look at me…" Killian smiled at her. "It's only a flesh wound, my love, nothing to write home about. Listen to me…" He panted. "Not an hour ago, you were telling me not to doubt myself, remember? To give myself a second chance? Well, how's about you practice what you preach, savior?"

"Milady…" Davy Jones joined his son. "You are the savior, indeed, my son has full faith in you as do I! Remember what you carry with you, love! You are the Light One. You…. Can control this."

"Emma…" Killian whispered. "You can do this! Love yourself… like I love you…."

He held his hand out.

"Killian… I … don't want to hurt you…"

"You won't." he smiled confidently. "You love me too much. And I believe in you. Come, Swan, take my hand… think of Lilly… she needs you to be whole, to be sound…"

"Lilly… Henry…." Emma whispered and sighed. She closed her eyes and images of her little happily ever after flashed through her mind and a smile adorned her face. They didn't fear her…

Nobody did. Only she did, only she feared herself.

She didn't even feel the moment when Killian's hand held hers; it wasn't until the lamps and chandeliers stopped flickering that she opened her eyes and found Killian's confident side grin, smirking at her. "That's my girl…" He whispered.

Emma smiled and embraced him before turning to Elsa.

"Elsa, tell me… and you will get your sister back." Ingrid smiled. "More like, your cousin, but we can compromise…"

Elsa's lower lip shook uncontrollably as her sight went from the mirror to Emma to Hook and back to the image of Anna on the glass.

"Remember, Ice is a brittle thing, kind of like trust." Ingrid grinned coldly. "It can crack and ship away so easily…" The image of Anna's iced figure began to crack.

"ANNA, NO!" Elsa shouted.

"ELSA!" Emma pleaded.

"WHERE ARE THE CHILDREN, ELSA?"

Torn between the sight of Emma and Killian practically begging for her not to disclose the whereabouts of the kids and the image of her beloved sister about to become a pile of ice cubes, Elsa fell to her knees, a sudden gush of icy wind surrounding them. Killian turned to his father. "Find the others… get on the vessel, head back to Arendelle… I have a feeling that's where they are. Now GO!"

"What about you, Killian?" He shouted back at his son.

Killian smiled at his father and placed a hand on his shoulder. "My place is wherever Emma is. Please… Use your spyglass to find them and get to them…. And then to us…. Father."

Davy smiled broadly and nodded. "As you wish, my son…" He clasped his hand around Killian's wrist before exiting the house.

The wind increased; snow had accumulated in the manor and icicles were forming on the ceiling.

"She's panicking… like you were just now…." Killian whispered into Emma's ear.

"This stops… NOW." Emma said, suddenly sending a blast that pushed the Snow Queen to the other side of the room. Emma ran to Elsa. "Hey, it's ok…" she smiled at her. Just… calm down…"

"Emma… I'm so sorry…" Elsa wept.

"You did nothing wrong…"

"I did…. I did… Look…"

She pointed at the grand mirror, and reflected on it was no longer the image of Anna frozen in place… but the children, being helped by Kristoff, as they climbed up a long ice staircase leading to the castle on the North Mountain.

"No…" Killian breathed hard. He tried to reach for something to break the mirror with, but Ingrid was back on her feet.

She paced to the crystal and stared, wide-eyed, at the image before her. "Well, that wasn't so hard, now, was it?" she turned with a smile to Elsa. She then proceeded to touch the mirror, and slowly, she began to take a liquid form that seemed to be getting absorbed into the mirror.

Emma knew now… her children were in dire need for help.

"NO!" She shouted, as she reached in time to grasp Ingrid's tunic, and she too began to get sucked into the mirror.

Killian jumped to her. "EMMA!" Just in time before Emma's left hand turned liquid, she grabbed Killian's left hand, where his hook once stood.

Within a second, they were all gone.

Elsa panted, cleaned her tears, and swiftly made her way back out the manor, getting puffed back into the vessel by Regina within a minute of her departure.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Halfway up the stairs that led to the ice castle on the Northern Mountain, Henry thought he and his sister might probably never make it home; but Kristoff adamantly led them both up. "It's only two hundred and seventy steps, guys!" He huffed. "I know it's slippery, but trust me, it's totally worth it."

Lilly held on to Henry, piggy-back. The teenage boy turned his face to his sister. "You okay back there, sis?"

"Mh-hm." She whined back.

Henry wasn't sure she was being entirely honest, but his task was to keep her well, alive, no matter what the cost.

"Kristoff, do you know where the mirror is?" Henry asked, carefully holding on to the frozen railing, numbness starting to hit his fingertips despite being clothed under sheepskin gloves.

"Nope."

"What do you mean, nope?"

"I mean…" He stopped, panting, and turned to Henry. "I have only been here once, and only once have I seen the castle from the inside." He smiled at Henry. "Just like you told me in that… was it movie?"

"Yeah. Movie."

"FWOZEEEEN!" Lilly grinned. (She'd seen the film a couple times in Storybrooke).

Kristoff chuckled. "Yeah, well, I'm not quite as goofy as you guys seem to remember me, from that particular version of the facts, right? Elsa was never really too much out of control, and Anna was…" He stopped and sighed. "… Anna was just Anna. She was always funny, laughing, smiling…" he chuckled and shook his head. "Talking too much… God, she never knew how to be quiet, but… I would give anything to have her chatting away right now."

"You loved her?" Henry winced, as he tried to catch his breath.

Kristoff looked down. "Yeah. I still do. She's the kindest soul in this kingdom, there's nothing she wouldn't do for the people she loves. And that included marrying that… jackass, Prince Hans." He shook his head and went on climbing up the stairs. "It was the deal she had to make, to keep the kingdom, to save me and to ensure Elsa wouldn't die. I was devastated, but… I suppose she did the right thing. I just wish I knew where she is."

"Do you think she's still alive?"

"I'm sure of it." Kristoff grinned. "Come on, kid, we still have one hundred and eighty steps to…" His smile fell as he rose his eyes. "Oh, no…"

"What, what is it?"

"It's… that guy. Again."

Henry raised his eyes and before him stood a towering snowman with glowing blue eyes, standing right in front to the entrance to the castle. "Oh this can't be good…." He looked down to find they were smack over the cliff that divided the two edges of the mountaintop.

Kristoff began to pace back. "If… we move slowly… and get… out of here… he might… let us off."

The snowman looked at them and frowned. "GO AWAY!" It shouted.

Henry began to pace back with Kristoff, but Lilly slid off his back to the floor and slipped between their legs to the front, pacing quickly up the icy stairs, directly to the monster.

"LILLY!" Henry shouted. "Lilly, NO!"

The little girl seemed oblivious to the towering threat before her as it ducked his head, growling at her. Henry tried to sprint up the stairs, hoping to get there in time to receive whatever crushing blow it may have had in store for his little sister.

"Hello." Lilly grinned at the snow beast and simply touched it.

Instantly, the massive snowman smiled and emitted a loud "Aw" as it turned a kind grin at the two young men who accompanied her. Henry stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Lilly simply holding on to its leg. "SNOWMAN!" she laughed with a massive smile on her face.

"Talking snowmen. This… never stops getting weird." Kristoff muttered, as he, Henry and Lilly finally made it to the door.

"BYE BYE!" Lilly waved at the snow monster, who also replied a coarse but friendly "BYE BYE" as he headed down to disappear into the valley.

"Wow…" Kristoff scratched his head as he looked at the little girl. "She's… amazing. Last time I faced that thing I fell down a two hundred foot drop and almost didn't make it."

Henry didn't reply; he was too busy staring up at the perfection that was Elsa's ice castle.

"This is definitely better than the movie…" He smiled as Lilly touched the doors.

As they yielded and gave way to the inside of the castle, Henry and Kristoff paced inside, staring around them. The troll king had been right; it was even colder inside than it was outside.

"Ok, Lilly… we have one shot at this…." Henry said, his teeth chattering. "Let's f… find that m… mirror."

"Aye." She said and instantly made her way to the stairs. "Up!"

"Ok…" Henry walked to her and picked her up. "Kristoff, you coming?"

The handsome young mountain man nodded as he started up the staircase. "More stairs… geez…"

Then they were faced with a grand room, one that Kristoff remembered well; it was the place where Elsa had accidentally frozen Anna's heart. And there, in front of them, stood the mirror.

Henry turned swiftly to Kristoff. "OK, hear me out: whatever you do, don't look into the mirror, and if it starts talking to you, don't listen to it. It's designed to show you only the darkness in yourself."

Kristoff nodded as Henry took Lilly's hand. "Come on, sis… let's get this over with. Mom and dad need our…"

A sudden flash of light coming from the mirror interrupted Henry, and the three were pushed back by a sudden force. Although Lilly landed on Kristoff, she immediately burst into tears. Henry ran to her. "Hey! You ok?"

"BAD! BAD!" she shouted pointing at the image that was slowly forming from a watery mass that seemed to drop from the mirror.

"Oh, no…" Henry stood in front of her and drew his sword.

"We're too late!" Kristoff shouted.

As the figure finally stood tall before them, so did the bodies of Emma Swan and Killian Jones.

"MOM!" Henry shouted with a smile.

"You ok, kid? Your sister?" Emma shouted.

Ingrid paced to the boy, Kristoff and little Lilly. "My my, you are resourceful, child." She smiled. "But I'm afraid you are also a liability…"

"Get the hell away from him!" Kristoff shouted, holding a hand pickaxe.

"Oh. You. Again." She sneered disdainfully at Kristoff. "Perhaps you'd like to join your fiancée in the mirror?"

Kristoff's face fell. "She's… in there?"

"Safe and sound…. And frozen solid. But don't worry, her heart is technically not in her body, so she's alive. Not that… you'll profit from that at all."

Killian ran to Henry. "Are you well, lad?" He hugged him. He then fell to his knees and reached for Lilly. "My little lass…." He held her tight.

Emma walked to her family and turned around. "You don't get to lay a single finger on my family, you bitch!"

"Why Emma…" Ingrid shook her head. "even now you don't seem to realize just how much they are in your way."

"No, YOU are in my way." And she blasted her away again, in an attempt to try and usher Killian, Henry and Lilly back through the mirror.

"Come love, let's go… Henry, run!" Killian carried Lilly and tried to run behind Emma together with Henry.

"Ah-ah…" Ingrid smiled and sent an ice blast that formed a wall around the three.

"NO!" Emma shouted.

The Snow Queen turned around to Emma. "This is all too easy…" She flicked her hand and Emma was tied down with ice chains to the floor. "Listen, sweetie: don't worry. As soon as I am done with them, I will just… delete your memory. You won't remember her, or your boy, or even the pirate. It's a lot easier. There will be no pain. And I promise you…" She caressed her face. "You will definitely be happier that way." Ingrid turned to Kristoff and shoved him out the door, closing it behind him. "Peasant…"

She walked to the pirate. "Did you really think you could outsmart me?" she smiled. "Now, if you would just hand me the child, I might consider letting you take the boy, and the two of you can walk out of here alive."

Killian panted hard through gritted teeth. "I'd sooner DIE than to hand over my child to you."

"Makes two of us!" Henry joined the threat, his stare fixed on the Ice Queen's ice blue eyes.

On the floor, Lilly was touching the ice wall, melting it behind the protection of her father's legs.

Ingrid sighed deep. "Very well, captain. As you wish…" She began to make a powerful flurry of ice between her two hands.

"Henry…" Killian smiled shakily. "It has been an honor… calling you my son."

"The honor's been all mine, dad."

Just before she released the ice curse on them, Emma suddenly blasted free from the chains and sent a fiery shockwave to Ingrid, once again knocking her down. Lilly took the chance and ran to the mirror.

Kristoff had let himself back in. He tapped on the ice wall where Killian and Henry were enclosed and smiled with the pickaxe in his hand. "I may not be able to do anything to her… But I know a thing or two about ice." He winked at Henry. "Stand back!" He gave the wall a single blow at a certain angle, and a large crack started to form. With a second blow, it fell apart."

Killian laughed and embraced Kristoff. "The ice man of Arendelle! Good to see you, mate!"

Kristoff smiled back. "Been too long, Captain."

"You guys? Can we leave the pleasantries for a later time?" Henry ushered them while Emma and Ingrid were locked in a magical exchange of white fire and ice. "Someone needs to cover for my sister."

Their gazes were drawn to the little girl who crept with her back to the walls, slowly, behind Ingrid, coming closer and closer to the mirror each time.

"I know what to do." Henry nodded, running to Lilly and picking her up. "Come on, kid, I'll give you a ride."

Lilly held on to Henry as they rushed across the white, cold room.

Killian and Kristoff went to his side as Henry tried his best to reach the mirror.

Ingrid's gaze was suddenly drawn to them and with her other hand, she threw a chilled flare. It caught Kristoff's leg.

"GAGH!" The young man shouted. The other three stopped. "No, no, GO! GO FINISH THIS!" Kristoff shouted as he fell to the floor. Killian winced, nodded and continued with his son, randomly trying to avert whatever blasts came from Ingrid's left hand.

Emma turned one hand and made a fireball, much like the ones Regna had taught her how to make. She then blasted it at Ingrid and once again sent her crashing back. It gave her time to produce the box she had tucked in her jacket. Ingrid sat up and gasped as she saw the box. "H… how did you…?"

"I am the Light One, queenie, and the savior." Emma sneered. "I'm the one who will be guarding this thing. Now, you and I both know what this thing can do, so… please don't make me use it."

Ingrid gritted her teeth. "You… can't… do this!"

"Oh, but I can." Emma grinned. "You've caused enough trouble already."

Killian, Henry and Lilly slowly reached the mirror while Emma held the box in her hand, threatening to open it and unleash the power of the hat on her. Lilly held her hands up to her dad. "Daddy! Up!"

"There you go, darling! Killian picked her up and held her to the mirror, careful not to look inside himself.

Panting desperately, Ingrid suddenly blasted Emma out of the way with a flick of her hand. The box rolled from Emma's hand, and both Ingrid and Henry made a beeline towards it. She blasted another ice shard at Henry and the boy ducked in time to slide to the floor and grab the box.

"Foolish boy!" She shouted and tried to throw another blast of ice; Henry hid behind what looked like an ice couch.

Swiftly and while Emma turned to see if Henry had been hurt, Ingrid had a clear shot at Killian and Lilly. "Two birds in one shot." She smiled, and she tossed a massive ice blast in their direction.

Emma felt her entire world slow down; she ran instantly towards Killian and Lilly, and jumped.

The blast hit her chest square on her heart, just as Lilly finally touched the glass.

"NO!" Ingrid shouted.

Henry rose from behind the couch in time to see his mother fall.

The glass from the mirror began to tremble; it then cracked into thousands of little pieces and a light, just as bright as the one that had brought Killian, Emma and the Snow Queen into the room, suddenly seemed to connect directly to Ingrid, taking her power from her, leaving her drained, as she fell to her knees. Lilly too seemed to connect to the glass, all her magic being sucked away to destroy the evil curse of the mirror.

And then, suddenly, silence.

Kristoff's leg unfroze, and the cold was replaced by a lesser chill. He stood and ran to Ingrid, taking some rope from his waistband and tying her hands behind her back. Ingrid wept as she stared at Emma. "What have I done?" She sobbed. "Emma… oh, no what have I done?"


	37. A pirate's heritage

**YAY! WE'RE 5 CHAPTERS AWAY FROM THE END OF THIS FIC.**

**FOR NOW, SOME SERIOUS ANGST AND THEN SOME FLUFF TO HELP US ALL HEAL FROM THE NASTY WOUNDS INFLICTED ON US BY THE WRITERS, LOL. NO STEALING OF HOOK'S HEART HERE.**

**DAT DAMN HEART IS SACRED.**

**AGAIN, THANKS A LOT TO ALL FOR THE REVIEWS AND FOR YOUR PATIENCE; I KNOW I USED TO UPLOAD NEARLY A CHAPTER EVERY DAY, BUT LIKE I SAID, I WAS DEALING WITH A PRETTY SERIOUS HEALTH ISSUE THAT REQUIRED SURGERY. I AM DOING A LOT BETTER NOW AND I WILL BE A-OK , BUT TO BE HONEST, I LOVE THIS STORY SO MUCH (AND I KNOW YOU GUYS DO TOO), I MIGHT TAKE A LITTLE BIT LONGER THAN A DAILY POST, BECAUSE IF I DID A DAILY POST THE STORY WOULD BE OVER IN THE BLINK OF AN EYE AND I AM NOT TOO SURE I WANT IT TO FINISH SO QUICKLY, LOL.**

**THANKS TO ALL THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE FOLLOWED ME THROUGHOUT THIS TALE. IT'S SO MUCH FUN TO WRITE KNOWING THERE ARE PEOPLE OUT THERE WHO SAY THINGS LIKE "I LIKE YOUR VERSION BETTER THAN THE SHOW AND I'LL HAVE IT IN MY HEAD INSTEAD", HEE HEE THAT IS DEEPLY FLATTERING, MY DEAR ANON, THANK YOUS SO SO MUCH BOTH FOR FOLLOWING AND FAVING, AS WELL AS MANY OF YOUR KIND WISHES FOR MY RECOVERY! ENJOY THE NEW CHAPTER Y'ALL! **

OOOOOOOOOOO

"Emma? EMMA!" Killian turned to find his wife lying on the floor. He placed Lilly down and Henry ran to hold his little sister. She was weak and whiny, but otherwise, fine.

The pirate went down to his knees and held Emma to himself. "Oh, no no no…" He whispered. "Emma, what have you done?"

As he turned her face to him, he was crushed to see her lips were turning blue, like that day in Elsa's cave… only a lot faster.

"K… Killian…" she shivered. "T… take them h… home."

"No… no no, darling, we're all going home…" He smiled shakily. "All of us. You and Lilly and Henry… She's fine, Swan, we won again…"

Emma smiled back. "I know… I know…" She was shivering badly. "K… Killian I'm… so c…c…cold…."

"Mom!" Henry ran to her with Lilly in his arms. "Come on, don't do this."

"Mommy…" Lilly whined.

Killian turned a desperate gaze to his daughter. "Cupcake… remember when you helped daddy live? Can you save mommy, angel?"

Lilly was wide and teary eyed as she shook her head.

"I was warned." Henry moaned. "Touching the mirror would bring an end to her magic. She has none left…"

"No…" Killian turned back to the woman in his arms. "Then use yours, Swan. Don't give up, don't… don't leave us…. Please…"

"Dad… look…." Henry whispered, his voice broken.

Killian turned to look in the direction Henry was pointing at, and saw in horror as his wife started to freeze into solid ice from her feet up.

"Oh, no, no NO!" He turned to her again. "Emma, don't, please, just… our child, Swan! Please!"

A single tear left Emma's cheek as she reached up and touchewd his cheek. "I'm s… sorry… Killian. I c… can't.. I…." her hand shook against his cheek. "Go home…. T… take care of th… them, p…pirate. My mom and d… dad, you'll have to explain…. Keep an eye on th… them. You'll do f… fine. Just…. Remem… remember me ev… every now and then." She smiled broadly.

"Swan… please…" Killian began to weep.

"We will be keeping an eye on y… you guys. Nicholas, myself and our baby. We… w will be there…" She smiled again.

"No, Emma, you know I… I can't be without you, Swan, don't… don't leave us… don't… don't leave… me…" He sniffed. "What will I do?"

Emma's breathing became increasingly elaborate and hard as the ice reached her hips.

"Y… you will be… ha… happy, Killian. I want you to be. Ok? F… find so.. someone…"

"No…"

"… and b… be happy. Y… you deserve it." She continued caressing his cheek. "I'll b… be w… waiting f… for you, pirate."

She started to gasp for air.

"Mom, no…. no!" Henry shouted, while Lilly simply cried in his arms.

"Swan…" Killian wept steadily. He kissed her cheek hard and whispered into her ear. "I love you, Emma… I love you…"

With a final gasp, Emma blinked a few times and had barely enough air to whisper back. "Killian… I love you."

Her soft, cold body suddenly turned hard and wet.

Killian pulled his face away. His eyes widened with horror, finding his wife frozen solid in his arms, one final steamy breath escaping the figure of her lips.

Henry fell to his knees. "No… no…." He held hard on to Lilly, a little too late to stop her from seeing her mother turn to ice.

His expression ached, Killian felt her hand on his cheek, also wet and hard, and he covered her frozen hand with his own. He'd fought foes and time, he'd crossed realms, taken bullets and lost his hate for the chance at a happy ending. And for a long while, he had it.

But like before, it had been taken from him.

"Emma…" He whispered breathily, touching the iced face with the same hand as he gently, ever so gently, deposited the statue of ice that had once been his Emma… and his unborn child, on the floor. He then fell to his back, still staring at her as Henry and Lilly ran to him.

They all held each other.

All that could be heard was the sound of their sobs, and the gasps of regret from the Snow Queen, who had never intended to strike Emma, while Kristoff merely sighed and hung his head, removing his hat.

In other times, the man that had been Killian Jones would have jumped on her, and without asking questions would have cut her throat with his hook; but for some reason, he didn't. Even as he looked up at her and into her eyes through his tears, he didn't feel the thirst for revenge, like he had before.

He really HAD changed. Emma had changed him. Devastated and heartbroken as he was, there was no anger, no need to kill to restore his balance… only the ache of having lost the one reason he had become such a man.

"Kristoff?"

The gentle voice of a young woman made all heads turn in the direction of the place where the mirror had once stood.

It was Anna.

"Anna…" Kristoff stood from the place where he had tied the queen up and walked to her. "Anna…"

She smiled and held her arms out. Slowly, they came together in a kiss that broke all records.

"I knew you were alive, I knew it!"

"I'm so sorry…" Anna smiled as she wept. "I had to marry Hans, I had no choice, you know what he was like and with Elsa gone and…" She turned her face to Killian. "You… you're the pirate captain… you saved my life once."

Barely able to move, Killian moved his face to her and gave Anna a gentle nod, before turning back to his embrace with Lilly and Henry.

"He married the savior. And the little girl? She was the healer. She was the one that broke the curse, Anna, their daughter set you free." He turned to look at the little family. "But, the savior…"

Anna gasped as she realized where Emma lay, an ice statue.

She paced to the Snow Queen, her face dour. "Three… hundred… years." She spoke coldly. "You destroyed so many lives; Why did you do this?"

Ingrid looked up at Anna, disdain and pain marked on her face. "Because… I wanted what THEY have." She tilted her face to the Jones family that still sat in a tight, ached cuddle over the loss of the savior. "Love. That was all I ever wanted, but I was never given love because I was different! Is that so hard to see?"

"NO." Anna shook her head. "You were pushed away because you were mean! You were cruel! You were angry, so angry about one or two people hurting you, that you took it out on everyone who wasn't magical, like you! You are telling me about love, when you have none in your heart!" She gasped a sob. "You… separated me from my sister… you broke my wedding date and had me marry a vile, vile man, you broke my love's heart. You hurt countless people in our country; you disgraced a good, loyal naval officer, tore his family apart, had him cursed… and now you have rendered a good man a widower and two children motherless! And you think this will get you love? How?" She turned to Kristoff. "Where is Elsa?"

Killian spoke from his spot on the floor, his voice a whispery shadow of his usual articulate speech. "Your sister… is well. She is currently a passenger on The Flying Dutchman, courtesy of my father. They are on their way back to these shores…." He turned his limpid blue eyes, now rimmed in red, to Anna's. "All is well, princess… It's over."

Anna grinned at him and walked to his side, kneeling beside Killian's side and placing a hand on his shoulder. "I remember you. The pirate… You pretended to be a duke. You… fooled Hans into showing you the treasury, and then tried to poison him with Dreamshade, but blew your cover when I almost took wine from his poisoned cup. You are the son of Lord Commodore Jones, Killian."

Killian merely nodded.

Anna smiled at him. "Your heart is the kindest heart in the world, Captain. I know that Elsa and I can't… can't replace the loss of the savior, but I am sure a royal pardon should enable your father to sail safely in Arendelle once more, to claim his lands and…"

"K… Killian? Dad?" Henry spoke, his voice nasal from crying.

Killian turned and looked in the direction of Henry's bewildered gaze.

From the place where her heart sat, Emma's iced figure was slowly turning back into flesh, a light rimming the edges of wherever the ice was thawing and shining through into the room.

"Emma…" Killian gasped.

Anna smiled from ear to ear. "Of course…. OF COURSE!" She turned to Kristoff. "You remember back then, when I saved Elsa?" She laughed and she hugged him. "Only an act of true love can thaw a frozen heart! I saw it! From the mirror as the curse broke. She took the hit to save her family!"

As the thawing reached her face, Emma's soft, beautiful features became flesh again, and as she steadily unfroze, the hand that had remained held up to his cheek collapsed by her side.

But she still remained breathless.

Henry grinned and grabbed Killian's shoulder. "You know what she needs, dad. Do it!"

Lilly nodded. "AYE!"

Through his tears, a smile shone suddenly on Killian's face. He grabbed the back of Henry's neck and pulled him to touch his forehead with his own, and Henry also grabbed Killian's head. The pirate then turned to Lilly and held her completely and hard. He kissed her head hard and leaned his cheek on it. "Darling girl…" He looked at his daughter then. "You're a bloody hero, Lilly…."

"Hendy too!" She nodded.

Killian raised his eyes to the young boy. "Aye… every bit, to that." He then turned to Emma. "And so is she…" He picked her up gently, cradling her head and caressing her cheek with his good hand. He leaned in to her. "Swan… come back to me." Slowly, he kissed her, his red, heated lips bringing color back into her purple ones… and a halo of white light, unlike any other true love's kiss seen before, suddenly lit up the room. It seemed the light illuminated every corner of the castle, the mountain and the valley. The light shone down to the city of Arendelle, serving as a beacon for the figure of the Flying Dutchman as it approached the shores of the city.

From two miles away, the entire village of the rock trolls erupted into wild cheer.

The curse had been completely broken now.

As the lights simmered down, Killian waited, holding Emma in his arms, until her eyes slowly fluttered open.

Killian released a breath he didn't realize he had been holding back, and smiles broke on the faces of everyone around him as she stirred, her eyes suddenly meeting his. "Hook…"

He grinned back and bit his lip. "Welcome back, darling."

She smiled and swallowed. "You forgot to mention a hero…" She touched his face again. "You."

Killian chuckled as he kissed her hard once more, smiling lips meeting her own as she slowly sat up. He then leaned his head on hers. "Hero or not… I don't want to see you pull a stunt like this one again, love. Whatever would I do without you, Swan?"

"You proved what you would do, Killian. You didn't kill Ingrid… you held Henry and Lilly… you would be a good man… and a great father. You're loyal, hard-working… and Anna said it." She put her hand on his chest. "You have the kindest heart in the world."

Killian sighed and embraced her hard. "Darling Swan…"

Henry gasped. "You… were listening?"

Emma released Killian and turned to her son. "Every damn word, kid…" She held her arms open and Henry rushed to her side to hug her. "Every damn word…"

"We thought we'd lost you, mom…" Henry wept.

"I'm sorry, Henry."

"Don't be. You're the savior. You always save. You saved us all… "

"Mommy!" Lilly also hugged Emma and the blond mother turned to her baby girl, holding her hard. "My baby! Are you ok?" she kissed her face all over and laughed back as she heard the little girl laugh and giggle.

The only person in the room that wasn't smiling was Ingrid. Kristoff pulled her up and turned to Anna. "So what do we do now… your highness?"

She smiled at him. "You are silly! Why do you call me highness? You only call princes and princesses highness, but you don't have to, although, technically I am a princess and you would HAVE to, but not really right now because you're kind of my… boyfriend and… OH!" she gasped with a smile and walked to Emma as she stood up. "If you're the famous savior, that means you're a princess too, so maybe I should call you highness, and the captain is a prince by marriage so he's a highness too, and your children are all highnesses, but… given that we are just sort of on an awkward but really, really great situation of happy feels here, perhaps we can overlook all that dumb protocol?" she smiled and held her hand out. "Hi. I am Anna of Arendelle."

Emma laughed aloud and reached out to hug Anna. "Pleased to meet you at last, Anna." She then turned to Ingrid. "hey, you said you froze her body but not her heart. Time to give it back, Dairy Queen. Where is it?"

"Mommy?" Lilly tapped on Emma's thigh. The savior turned her face down to her daughter and saw the child pointing at a box that was sitting atop a white ice chest of drawers.

Emma nodded and went to the box; sure enough, in it sat the reddest, most beautiful heart she had ever seen. "Elsa wasn't kidding… you really are the nicest person in the world…" Emma grinned as she took the heart gently in her hands.

"Oh, well, I'm sure Elsa hasn't met EVERY person in the world to know that particular detail, but maybe I am the second… or third nicest. I don't know. Elsa Is also pretty nice and…"

Kristoff pulled her in for a kiss to silence her. Anna grinned.

"I had really, really missed your ramblings, princess…" He smiled, his lips still against hers.

"Am I rambling?" Anna frowned and turned to look at everyone, who nodded a sympathetic "yeah" in unison.

"Oh… sorry…" She shrugged with a giggle and then stood in front of Emma, clearing her throat and holding her chin up. "Very well, savior. I'm ready. Put that back where it belongs." She nodded with a grin.

"Right." Emma nodded. She huffed and looked into Anna's eyes. "I've only done this once before, and I know for a fact having someone's hand in your chest is not a pleasant experience, so… I apologize in advance for this…" she suddenly tucked her hand into Anna's chest. The redhead gasped as Emma placed the red, beating organ in it's place of origin and quickly pulled her hand out. She then looked at Anna. "H… how do you feel?"

Anna jumped up and down. "Perfect! Great! I could… I could…" She turned to Kristoff. "I could kiss you!"

Kristoff laughed and allowed her to kiss him hard.

"I could kiss someone too, if your highness will allow me…" Emma felt a tapping on her shoulder.

She swiftly turned to her pirate with a smile. "Hell, yeah!" She jumped and pulled him by his lapel, her lips crashing against his.

Henry covered Lilly's eyes and turned around. "God, you guys, get a room, geez…"

Ingrid only stared.

As she pulled away for breath, Killian stared into her eyes. "I love you Swan."

She grinned and stared into his eyes as her husband rocked her from side to side. "Ditto, captain."

"Anna?"

The voice of Elsa drew everyone's gaze to the door. No sooner had the Dutchman anchored in Arendelle, Regina had poofed everyone to the ice castle. The committee stared in awe as Elsa and Anna paced to each other.

Anna smiled from ear to ear. "Elsa…"

They came together in another embrace.

Kristoff smiled and looked around. "Ice… is… nice…"

Emma, Killian and the kids walked to meet Snow and David, who reached out to hug their grand children. Even Regina, Rumple, Robin and Belle had smiles on their faces for the Jones family.

Emma pulled Killian to whisper in his ear. "Don't tell them I got frozen. No need to worry them any more. It's all over."

"Aye, love, I had no intention of doing so…"

Emma turned around and walked to the two happy sisters, clearing her throat when she stood beside them. Elsa turned with a huge smile and hugged Emma. "I can't thank you enough for helping me find my sister."

"well, you did help me hide my kids from the snow Queen."

"Is there anything, anything at ALL that the queen of Arendelle can do for you and your family? I need to repay the favor, Emma."

Emma sighed and nodded, handing Elsa the box she had kept concealed under her jacket. "Yeah. I think this should stay here…" She turned to look at Gold, who even seemed keen on listening to the pirate and Henry's account of things, with Belle under his arm. She turned back to Elsa. "Even Gold's been his best. I don't want to chance making Rumplestiltskin spiral back into the villain he used to be."

Elsa nodded. "It will be well guarded. Anna?"

Anna nodded as well. "The secret will never leave our lips, Emma…princess… highness…"

"Emma will do!" Emma smiled as she touched Anna's shoulder. She turned back to Elsa. "I will miss you."

Elsa smiled fully and turned to grab Emma's hands. "We can stay in touch. I know where you live… and you know where I live too." She winked at her. "Ingrid may have gone around it the wroing way, but… she was kind of right about one thing."

"And what was that?"

"We really are… sisters. Kind of."

Emma laughed.

"Oh… OH OH! Does that mean I get an extra sister too? How cool is that? Great!" Anna jumped up and down.

Elsa raised her face to the crowd of friends. "Captain Jones?"

Both Killian and Davy turned to her. "Aye?"

Elsa grinned. "The senior… Captain Jones."

Davy walked to her. He bowed down. "Majesty…"

"You burned down the Arendelle fleet. But…" she sighed. "Your curse has been more than enough of a sentence. I hereby pardon you of your charges of piracy and plunder… And I grant you full access back to your lands and properties."

A sad smile rose on Davy's lips (and Killian's). "I appreciate it, milady… Alas, the curse will be broken soon… and I shall cease to exist as soon as it does."

"Captain…" Came Rumple's voice. Davy turned to face the Dark One, who paced to him. "Your son and the savior have already broken the curse. You still stand. The original curse enabled you to remain alive despite everything. Alas, that curse if gone, and you live. Except now… you are mortal. Although, from your looks… I'd say you still have a good forty or fifty years ahead of you. Use them wisely."

Killian grinned and looked down as he paced to his father. "You know… your house still stands atop the hill, mate. You might… you know… consider the prospect of residing there…"

Davy turned to his son. "What is this? Are you asking me to move to the real where you reside, Killian?"

Killian licked his lips and shot his gaze directly into his father's. "Aye, that I am." He pressed his lips together and sighed before resuming speech. "You have no reason now not to. You have your vessel, which is more than I can say for myself; your property is not here in Arendelle but over there and well… you are not yet dead."

Davy side grinned. "Might there be another reason?"

"Aye…" Killian nodded. "The other reason is… you no longer have an excuse to leave. You have… grandchildren here and…" He shrugged. "I'd not mind it if they… if I…. got to know you better?"

Davy's face lit up and he nodded. "In that particular instance, I'll humbly accept, although…" He shrugged. "That house is a bit too much for a man to live in alone. I'll offer you a trade: Your flat for the house."

Killian frowned. "What?"

"Killian… It's bad form for a man on his own to have such a cumbersome behemoth of a home…" He sighed. "You, on the other hand, might need the space: Two children and one on the way? That's quite the progeny." He paced to his son. "I know… you feel no connection to it, son, but it is your heritage. Not just Liam's." He placed both hands on Killian's shoulders. "Ponder on it, won't you?"

Henry stepped in. "Behemoth house? What behemoth house?"

Killian chuckled and shook his head as he looked down. "Oh bloody hell, da, you've sort of put me on the spot now." He turned his face to Henry. "You mother said you always wanted a pool, m'boy…" He shrugged. "I've just come into some… rather large family property and, mayhaps, we could make one? Would that tickle your fancy?"

Henry's eyes lit up like Christmas lights. "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?"

"No joke, lad." Davy shook his head with a grin. "It's up to my son, though, Killian?"

Emma then walked back to Killian and looped her arm around his as she held Lilly with her other arm. "Well, Captain? Seems to me you are running out of excuses yourself…"

Killian looked at Emma and then to David and Mary Margaret, who looked at them with equal curiosity.

"Swan, the apartment was a present from your parents, it's bad form to…"

"Stop kissing our asses, Hook, you want the house or don't you?" David cut in with a smile.

Snow shrugged. "We don't mind! All the more, we'll just have a bigger place for Christmas and Thanksgiving!"

He turned his face to his father's, who grinned at him with a risen eyebrow, identical to his own. "Well… 'Captain'? Have we a deal?"

Killian laughed and sighed. "Fine. Bloody pirate…" He smiled at his father….

And without warning, Killian reached for him and hugged him hard, a gesture that surprised Davy. It took him a couple of seconds, but her responded with equal affection.

Emma grinned.

She had known all along. He would forgive his father and make peace. If Killian Jones had ever yearned for anything, it had been a family; something that had also connected the two of them, quite deeply. She knew he's jump at the chance, basically because she did too.

That chocolate hearted pirate of hers…

Regina turned to Robin and smiled. "You think we should interrupt this sudden and sickening show of affection to explain that we're freezing to death and need to get back to the ship where Roland and Prince Neal are under a twenty-four hour sleeping spell and are unguarded?"

Robin nodded. "I do believe it would be a good idea. Ladies?" Robin spoke up. "I'm afraid we must head home. It's rather cold here and we left two sleeping infants onboard the Commodore's vessel."

"Oh, please, stay at least the night!" Elsa pleaded. "Just so you can see Arendelle and so we can have a grand feast, in honor of the little one who saved us all." She turned her face to Lilly, who had all but zonked out on Emma's shoulder. "Or at least… in her name."

Emma paced to her. "We really should go, Elsa." She shrugged. "You have a kingdom to rule… we kind of have another." She laughed. "God knows the dwarfs will go ballistic without a sheriff for a day."

Elsa nodded. "I understand." She then paced to Ingrid, who stills at, dour faced, and didn't look at anyone until Elsa stood before her. "As for you… You will be held in domiciliary arrest. I won't sent you to jail because you pose no threat to us any longer."

"You will not have me beheaded…. Elsa?" Ingrid sighed.

"No." She shook her head. "You are my mother. And on that basis alone, you are neither facing the gallows or the dungeons. Your home will be guarded, day in and day out. And only under strict supervision and MY special say so, are you to leave the premises of the home that will be given to you. You will want for nothing…. But you will still be a prisoner."

Ingrid sighed and looked down. "All of this… because I was different."

"No." Elsa shook her head. "Look at you now; you're not like me or Emma any more… you're normal. Your power is gone. And yet, your heart is still hardened. This has nothing to do with magic, majesty; All magic can be controlled and used for good. You chose the path of darkness. Be accountable for it."

She turned her back on Ingrid and back to Emma. "You are welcome any time you wish to visit us. All of you."

Anna nodded. "And bring that little one. Maybe when she's awake I'll get a chance to say thanks for getting me out of that mirror. Ugh." She shuddered.

Davy stepped to them. "My vessel can cross realms. Milady, if you wish it of me, I'll be only too glad to transport you here to visit with your lady friends… Or better still…" He turned to Killian. "I can lend it to my son. I hear he's a hell of a captain."

"That I am!" Killian chimed from behind as he chatted with David and Snow.

"Next thing he'll say is that he's also devilishly handsome…" Emma whispered.

"… and I'm devilishly handsome, too!" Killian completed, making Anna, Elsa, Davy and Emma giggle.

Elsa walked to Killian. "I may have a present for you, Captain. Call it a token of gratitude, first and foremost, for trying to take Hans down and sparking the first revolt against him."

Killian shook his head. "No need for any of that, love."

"Oh, I insist." She smiled.

"And what may that be?"

"You can pick any ship from the fleet… take it back with you."

Killian gasped and Emma looked up into his eyes with a smile. "Killian!"

Hook smiled and nodded. "That is indeed, a kind offer, lass." He nodded. "And I thank you for it… But I will have to decline."

His wife gasped. "What?'"

"Why, Captain?" Elsa shrugged. "These are the best ships in all the realms! You had yours for so many years, you should know!"

Killian nodded. "And I agree with that. They're bloody wonderful ships. But why dock two ships? Storybrooke has a small harbor and…" he shrugged. "...well, you heard my father. I can always commandeer his vessel if the need rises."

"Killian… you could have your own ship again!" Emma looked into his eyes.

He shook his head with a grin. "Blast it woman, you will try to coax me into accepting anything, won't you?" he kissed her cheek. "But not this, lass. Listen here: I traded the Jolly Roger… to be with you. And I've not felt want or necessity to have her back. My life is with you. I've no regrets. And like I said, I can always Captain the Flying Dutchman, if I itch for a sail." He kissed her. "I've no need for a ship anymore."

Davy placed a hand on his shoulder. "Well, the Dutchman IS also part of your heritage, son. Feel free."

Killian nodded.

Soon, Regina had poofed them all back to the ship, except for Ingrid, Anna, Kristoff… and Elsa.

Emma would miss her. But she smiled as she waved off the deck of the ship to the docks.

She knew that she had a new friend… and had just made a diplomatic ally; after all, she was a princess.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Being back home took a while for everyone to readjust.

No villain seemed to rise to once again threaten Storybrooke, or at least not for a while.

Emma had given Killian a blank baby album, much like the one she had filled out for Lilly. Killian delighted in filling it out, trying to experience what he had missed out on with his little girl.

When Emma reached her 17th week, Lilly turned three and had become quite chatty. Some complex words she still expressed through her cubes, but for the most part, she was really very jocular.

She looked glorious, Killian thought… and then he remembered what they had talked about.

A proper wedding.

Emma had every intention of fulfilling that particular request, and already had a dress in mind.

"Boston?" Killian sneered. "Why Boston, love?"

"There's a lady there. I think she's still alive." Emma sighed. "She was probably my only real friend, back in the group home. Mrs. Bailey. I've told you about her, haven't I?"

"Oh aye…" he nodded. "I recall her now… but why do you wish to visit her?"

Emma looked up into Killian's eyes. "Because…" she paced around their bed and reached to wrap both arms around his neck. "She has something I really, really want."

"What would that be, love?" He replied by placing his hands on her waist.

"The wedding own of my dreams…"

Killian huffed. "Well… who am I to deny you anything, princess?" He deposited a brief kiss on Emma's lips.

"Well, you can ask me to stay…"

"Or you can ask me to tag along."

Emma laughed. "You always do anyway, why would I even ask you that?"

"Well…" He whispered playfully, scratching his ear. "You know I'd not mind a couple of days away from your parents and my father, maybe leave the children here, go off with you, just the two of us, and… what was that Whale said about… sexual intercourse before the thirtieth week?" He raised an eyebrow at her, grinning.

Emma grinned back. "Mmmhhh, well, he did say it had to be… gentle…"

"Mh-hm…" He kissed her neck.

"And slow…" Emma closed her eyes.

His lips were pressed against his neck. "Sounds like my kind of pleasantry…"

"And absolutely healthy as well as necessary for both us AND the baby."

He felt his hand rise up to her breast. "Not to mention absolutely delightful…"

"Yeah well, you never cease to amaze me in that department." She whispered breathily, as his lips traced down her cleavage and back up to the other side of her neck.

"I've been on many an adventure with you Swan, but none quite as exciting as every time I am granted the honor to make love to you…"

"You are an expert flatterer, sir, and I no longer sure I even fall for that any more." She smiled, relishing in the feeling of his kisses and the pulsating erection he has starting to generate.

"You're a lousy liar, Swan. You love being with me, don't deny it…."

"No. No I won't… You're right. Stupid pirate."

"Dashing pirate." He mumbled as his tongue traced the contours of her right ear.

"Fine… dashing pirate. Yeah, I could use some of that…" Emma giggled. "Except that… right now… it's three o'clock in the afternoon, I'm packing a bag and Henry is in the next room…" She pulled away with a grin that was as teasing as it was frustrating.

"Just a temporary inconvenience." Killian sighed deep, trying to regain the heaps of control he had started to lose. "Your parents love coming here with Neal and I believe my father would not object to coming to help out so I'm sure they'll not mind if we set off together." He winked at her. "Besides…" He sighed as he caressed her hair. "You do know how much I love to learn about your beginnings, Swan. I'd love to meet this… Mrs. Bailey."

"Yeah, she'd like you. Okay, well then…" she smiled. "Grab a couple of things. DON'T forget your toothbrush!"

"Ha." Killian held both fists in the air as he victoriously collected a few garments and personals to pack for the weekend trip to Boston.

"Err… Mom?" Came Henry's voice. He then appeared at the door of their new (not so new) master suite overlooking the ocean. "You'd… better look at this."

Killian and Emma exchanged a gaze that read 'oh no' all over it, and they followed Henry back out the room, down the stairs and through the foyer to the back garden porch.

Lilly seemed busy as hell… making little flying lights that seemed to hover around her like fireflies.

Both parents frowned.

"Bloody hell, she got her magic back." Killian grinned.

Emma nodded and swallowed. "Not just that. Look at her, she's in perfect control of it!"

Killian sighed, turned and put an arm around Emma's shoulders. "Now aren't you damn proud, Swan?"

She looked at Henry. "How long has she been doing this?"

Henry shrugged. "I don't know… I just caught her."

"Just then, Lilly stood up and with a quick wave of her little hand, all the lights disappeared. She then turned and saw her parents and brother, smiling at her. She ran back in and reached for Emma. "I do magiiiic!"

"Yeah, we saw it, sweetie!" Emma picked her up. "Well done, it was really pretty!"

"Can you do one of those for me, little love?" Killian smiled at his daughter.

"Mh-hm!" She twirled her little hand and a pretty light lit up in front of Killian's face, which then cascaded into a million lights, like a colored waterfall, around the little family.

"AWESOME!" Henry laughed aloud.

"You will have your hands full." Emma sighed, looking at Henry.

Lilly shook her head. "I will behave."

Killian nodded. "That's my girl. Now, you won't do any strange stuff that will scare your Grandparents, now, will you?"

Lilly raised an eyebrow and grinned. "I don't know…"

"Nowww…" Klliian gave her a warning stare, trying hard to contain his laughter.

_Damn child, is exactly like me, blast it_…

"Ok, no." Lilly giggled.

"That's a good girl."

"Hey wait, I though… only mom was gong to Boston." Henry frowned. "You're tagging along with her?"

Killian looked at the boy. "When do I not?"

"Yeah. Good point."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO


	38. Shipping off to Boston

**THIS IS A HAPPY, BLISSFUL CHAPTER.**

**WHY? BECAUSE A) THE LAST FEW CHAPTERS HAVE BEEN ACTION PACKED AND WE ALL NEED A BREATHER EVERY NOW AND THEN AND B) WE DESPERATELY NEED A LITTLE BLISS AFTER THE ANGST WE'VE BEEN SUBMITTED TO WITH THE SHOW, LOL. (KILLY… NO HEART… GOODBYE… JUST… UGHHH!)**

**THANKS TO ALL WHO ARE READING! I STILL HAVE A BUNCH OF PEOPLE LIKING, FAVING, FOLLOWING AND COMMENTING ON "LILLY" AND I COULD NOT BE HAPPIER! YOU GUYS MAKE MY DAY (THOUGH I PROMISE NOT TO BE TOO SPECIFIC WITH THAT; SOME PEOPLE DON'T LIKE GETTING QUOTED AND GET A LITTLE PICKY, BUT HEY, I'M COOL WITH THAT AS WELL, I APPRECIATE BEING READ AT ALL!). I HAVE A FEW FOLLOWERS WHO HAVE COMMENTED ON EACH AND EVERY CHAPTER AND WHO ARE GIVING MY TOHER CS STORIES A SHOT AND I AM REALLY HAPPY YOU GUYS ARE ENJOYING THIS AND MY OTHER WORK! A HUGE HUG!**

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Thirteen.

She was thirteen when she packed her meager belongings for her first foster home.

The oldest she could be to stay at the group home was twelve, and time had passed for Emma; no one had adopted her, kept her or even looked at her. Thus, she had been assigned to move in with John and Paula Jeffries, a couple paid by the state to foster young ladies from the home.

As the beautiful young teenager placed her few clothes into a backpack, she felt tears sliding down her face; never had anyone felt so unwanted. Why would anyone want her, anyway?

"Emma?"

She didn't even want to turn to look at Mrs. Bailey as she approached, rubbing her hands together.

"Sweetheart? Please look at me…"

"No. It will only make it harder."

The older lady sighed and sat beside her backpack, on her bed. "I know you feel that things couldn't get worse, Emma, but you have to keep the faith…"

Emma chuckled and shoved her baby blanket into her bag. "Hm! Faith… in what, God? Fairies? Chris Kringle and the Easter Bunny?" She shook her head. "I'm old enough to not be adopted… and I'm also old enough to not believe in any of those, either."

Mrs. Bailey reached out and grabbed her wrist, making Emma stop her frantic packing; the girl stopped, but still stared blankly at her open satchel as tears continued to form.

"If not in any of those, Emma, you must NEVER lose faith in yourself." She sighed. "You are a special girl, Emma. And I know you think that right now, all is lost. But believe me, everything that happens, does so for a very good reason."

Emma huffed and finally, made eye contact with Mrs. Bailey. She then slumped down on her bed and shook her head. "I wish that were true for all of us. Look at Cecilia, yesterday…" Emma sniffed. "She's so cute and little and… Well, she's not me." She shrugged. "Even the Swans gave me back. I missed my chance." She looked into Mrs. Bailey's eyes. "How the heck am I supposed to believe in myself, when it's clear as day that I'm not even… worth anybody's time?"

Mrs. Bailey nodded. "It may seem that way to you. But not to those who see you from the outside. You see…" she stood up and sat on the bed in front of Emma, holding her hands. "There are two kinds of people in this world, Emma: Those who fight for happiness and those who don't. Now, it may seem unfair, but really, it isn't. The richest man in the world could count himself blessed for having everything, but the truth is that those who make wealth of any sort without effort, hardly appreciate it." She shrugged. "It just is. They live hollow lives, looking for something, anything that might thrill them, and pay fortunes to find small, petty little adventures: drugs, women… exotic travels and cars, any crazy thing they believe might fill the void. Then there are those that struggle finding happiness… and it may look like a dead end, a lot of the times, but when they don't give up, when they reach that final lick of straw and they feel they're hanging at the end of their rope, something always happens… and the little pieces of happiness they can find are worth everything, every tear, every drop of sweat and blood. You know why?" Emma shook her head and Mrs. Bailey smiled. "Because they earned it. They deserve it. Sometimes it's a long, long wait, sweetheart… but it is always, always worth it. So…" She reached up and caressed her cheek. "Never forget this, and whenever you feel like this is the worst it can get, say to yourself that that happiness…. Is just around the corner. The best is yet to come, Emma."

Emma's jaw quivered and she threw her arms around her home headmaster.

"I'll miss you Mrs. B…." She cried.

"I'll miss you too, sweetheart. Hey!" She smiled. "Tell you what: The day you find that happiness, the day you feel that your struggle has paid off, why don't you… come back and see me?"

Emma laughed and sniffed. "What if it's too long from now and you're… well, dead?"

The lady smiled and chuckled. "Well, if you take THAT long, I'll still be sure to leave a message for you, dear. But do come back when you can, ok?"

Emma nodded and allowed herself to be held by the only person who had ever shown her kindness of any sort.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Killian's head was leaning against the glass as he slept. He had nodded off somewhere between the south border of Maine and crossing into Massachusetts.

Emma was starting to feel the drag from the trip; Boston was certainly not as far from Storybrooke as New York City was, but it was still a long drive. She pulled over at a gas station and shook him by the shoulder.

"Killian?"

The pirate jolted awake, eyebrows up as he inhaled sharply. "Wh… are we there yet?"

"No…" She giggled. "Pee break, buddy. Pregnant woman… need it all the time."

He looked out the window and saw a familiar sight; it was a diner that from the outside resembled Granny's. "Ah! Sustenance…" He smiled and yawned as he stretched. "I hear ladies in gravidity also need quite a bit of that…"

"You read my mind."

"Open book, love." He winked.

Emma grinned and leaned forward to kiss him swiftly before she let herself out, placing her feet on the graveled floor and stretching her back, her five months of pregnancy notorious, and… "Bloody startling!" Killian smiled from the other side of the car.

"Are you kidding? I look like Shamoo…" Emma laughed.

Killian frowned. "Who's Shamoo?"

Emma giggled, pacing to him. "A Whale. I'm sure you saw your fair share of those in your … very long lifetime."

Killian laughed back. "And there she blows…" He whispered somewhat sensually as he held her to him. "Although you are a far sight prettier…" His hand danced on her tummy. "…and I am finally getting to see you the way you were with Lilly, which, I have to say, is a privilege, my love…"

She rubbed his nose against his and wrapped her arms around his neck. "You are a smooth talker…"

"Just telling you the truth…"

She gave him a quick kiss on the nose and then on the lips. "Come on, Hook, let me go or I'll pee right here…"

He pulled back. "Aye… don't want you to ruin my good boots, love. I'll see you in the diner. Can I order anything for you? Aside from hot cocoa?"

Emma paced hurriedly to the bathroom, but turned to him with a smile. "Yeah! Pie! Any kind."

Killian stepped into the diner and found a booth table facing the sight of where the bug was parked. He sighed and checked his mobile for messages before he picked up the menu. "Bloody hell, how many kinds of pie do they have here?"

"Pie Masters of the east coast, sir." A kind and very young waitress smiled. Killian raised his face to her and grinned.

"I can see that…."

The girl stared at him jaw slacked and Killian saw with mild bemusement that the hand she held the coffee in was shaking. "C… coffee?"

"Aye, please… and a cup of hot cocoa as well… and..." He looked back at the menu. "… I'll have this tomato soup, looks enticing. And, perhaps the apple cobbler? With a scoop of ice cream on the side." He winked at the girl. "That's for the wife."

The young girl's face fell. "Oh… Ok… sure sir." Her smile waned slowly as she poured the coffee into his cup and walked away.

Killian giggled and used the metal napkin holder to look at his reflection. "Bloody handsome devil, breaking hearts wherever you go… Bad form." He whispered to himself before winking at his reflection and putting the holder back down.

When Emma returned, she looked flushed and happy and Killian could have sworn she never looked as beautiful as she did then. He stood up as she took her seat, gasping as she tried to pry herself into the booth. "Damn…"

"Well, I'm fairly sure they didn't have pregnant ladies in mind when they designed these, darling." He winked at her. He placed an open hand on the tabletop and Emma grabbed it promptly once she had settled. "I love you, Swan…" He grinned.

"I love you too…" She frowned, still grinning. "Are you ok?"

"Aye… I was just thinking of other times." He let go off her hand and sat back and shook his head as he looked down. "Before I met you, I'd be floating around vast, endless oceans, thinking of only two things: The Dark One's demise and Milah. How the light in her eyes faded as her heart was crushed." He shook his head. "It's quite a grizzly thought to carry around for such a long time, I honestly don't know how I did it, living such a shallow-hearted existence." He looked back up at her and the smile returned to his face. "And then here you are… Three years after meeting you, carrying our second child together, three if we count Henry and four if we also include the little one that left us. And I have to say, I never believed, in all those years of woe, that I'd ever feel as happy as I do today." He chuckled. "I suppose some villains do find a happy ending."

Emma sighed and smiled. "You were never a villain. Not really. You were a guy who just… let himself be guided by anger because you had no one to stir you the right way before."

"Aye, and I did loads of villainous things, my dear, believe me… I WAS a villain. A vile one, a coward and…"

"And WAS is past tense, Jones. Come on, you're here now and you're anything BUT a villain." She huffed. "Have you ordered?"

"Aye…"

"Too bad…" Emma said, her eyes darkening.

"What? Why? I thought you wanted to whoa whoa WHOA!"

Killian's eyes widened as he felt the tip of Emma's foot literally caressing his groin.

Emma side-grinned. "What's the matter, Captain? Too coy for a crazy little rendez-vous with your old lady?"

Killian chuckled and literally blushed. "Flaming hell… Swan…" He laughed. "Not that I DON'T want to, love, but have you actually noticed we are in a very public diner?"

"You don't say…" Emma replied with a snarky smiled. The footwork intensified.

Killian sighed and closed his eyes. "Bloody hell, woman…"

Just then the girl arrived with a tray full of food; after eyeing Emma up and down, she started placing the food on the table. "Ok… One hot cocoa and apple cobbler with ice cream for the lady… and hot… tomato soup for… you… sir." She grinned at Killian as she placed the soup before him. "Hot…"

Emma's gulp would have easily been heard all the way back home; it didn't help any when Killian replied "Thanks, love…"

The girl grinned at him and swung her ass away from the table.

Killian giggled.

"Really?" Emma huffed.

"Hmm?" Killian looked up from his soup and was stunned to find Emma's cheeks were as red as his tomato soup. "Really what, Swan?"

"That chick!" she gnarled. "She was totally hitting on you!"

Killian frowned. "What?"

"HEY!" Emma struggled to stand up.

"Swan… Swan don't…" Killian begged, holding his hand out.

"YOU! YEAH YOU!"

The girl turned around to Emma. "What?"

"Oh, bloody hell…" Killian shook his head and hid it behind the palm of his hand.

"You think it's cool, huh? Flirting with married guys and wiggling your ass for the whole world to see? HUH? You thought I wouldn't fucking notice that?"

The girl huffed. "Geez, what the hell!"

"YEAH, what the hell indeed, you little…"

"Go on, crazy lady, just sit the hell down and eat your cobbler, will ya?" The girl chuckled. "God knows you got plenty of room in there for it…"

Emma gasped.

Hook gasped even louder.

The whole diner gasped.

"Shit." Hook whispered under his breath.

Emma grabbed a plate and tossed it at the girl like a Frisbee, whacking her smack on the forehead.

"SWAN!" Killian stood up.

The girl fell to the floor and Emma was already stampeding in her direction. "Crazy lady? I'll show you crazy, you little…"

"All right, love, all right, that will do!" she felt Killian's restraint.

"WHAT? YOU let go of me, Hook, you're the reason I am the way I am now, so… just… fucking… UUUGHHH!"

He sat her down and turned to her with a scorn. "You are taking this WAY beyond the limit, Emma, now… STAY PUT!" He shouted, and Emma huffed and pressed her lips together tight, huffing and puffing through her nose. Killian turned around and looked at the waitress as she stood up, producing a wallet as he held a hand up. "Apologies, lass…" He produced a few bills and placed them on the table.

"Put a leash on her! Crazy bitch!" The waitress gnarled as she snatched the money from his hand with one hand and held her forehead with the other.

By then, Emma was already heading to the bug.

Killian caught up with her and stood in front of her. "Do you mind telling me what the bloody hell all THAT was about?"

Emma huffed again. "OH COME ON! Don't tell me you didn't notice that little whore flirting with you, Killian! She called you hot! I was right in front of her! She deserved a little…"

"Slow down, Emma!" He held both hands up. "You know damn well that that happens more often than not! This might sound presumptuous, darling, but I AM devilishly handsome and some women are bound to notice it!"

"Yeah but they… They don't have to…"

"Swan!" He halted her again. "Hormones. Remember?" He held her by the shoulders and looked into her eyes. "yes, others may look at me, but that doesn't mean I look at them! All right? You know where my heart belongs Swan… that poor girl, you nearly cut her head off…"

Emma blinked repeatedly and heaved. "Jesus Christ, I almost did, didn't I?"

Killian nodded.

Emma looked into his eyes and her chin began to shake. "See?" she said already breaking into sobs. "I'm fat! I am a friggin' whale! I am hideous! I…"

"No, you are not…" He finally held her in his arms.

"She said it, Killian, she said.., well she implied that I was…"

Killian finally smiled. "And you're going to take the word of a waitress over mine, now?" He tilted her face up to him by her chin. "You want the truth?"

She nodded, her face smeared with her mascara.

"Very well. You are tremendously, hugely with child, your stomach looks enormous… And it's the most beautiful thing in the world. The lass back there was just jealous love, that you get to be the one to bear my offspring and not her. You are not a bloody 'whale' Swan, you are a princess about to become a mother for the third time. All right? Believe me?"

She sniveled and grinned.

"And you're also prettier than she, if I might add…" He grinned for good measure.

Emma chuckled and cleaned her face with the back of her hand. "I was out of line, wasn't I?"

He nodded. "You're scary, darling."

"Maybe I should go back there and apologize…"

"NO!" He shook his head and led her to the bug. "I think not."

"But our food…"

"I'm sure there's another diner down the road, sweetheart."

"But Killian, you already paid and…"

"Emma…" He smiled, wide-eyed, and completely humorless. "We are NOT going back in there."

She sighed deep and nodded. "All right."

She got behind the wheel just as he opened the door to his side, and Emma had only just started the engine when a guy ran from the diner, with a doggy bag. "Guys! Wait!"

Killian rolled down the window. "Look, we're leaving, we don't mean to …"

"No, no, please… take this, it's your food." He smiled at them. "I'm the owner."

"Oh, my god…" Emma sighed. "I am so sorry for what I did back there, I…"

"No, ma'am, I should be the one to apologize… Kaylee's my daughter, she was completely out of line with her behavior, you know, she's only seventeen, it's her first job…" He shrugged. "Hormones.."

Killian had to stifle a giggle.

"Anyway, I hope you guys do come back sometime…" he smiled as he handed Killian the bag with their food. "Pie masters of the east coast…"

Emma smiled a full, bright smile at the guy. "Thank you so much…. And again, I'm sorry."

The guy stepped back and waved goodbye as they drove off. Killian's stomach growled and he immediately took the cup of soup to his lips. He then proceeded to literally feed Emma so she could keep her eyes on the road.

And they had to pull over a little while later when Emma moved her hand from the gear to once again have a good grab of Killian's particulars. The warning look on his face and the stern-sounding "SWAN!" didn't deter her from holding the wheel with her left hand and going for broke with her right. Within seconds, the pirate had closed his eyes and was quite literally about to drool.

Pulling over for immediate temporary relief was imperative. Thank heavens for tall highway bushes!

That hardly qualified as love-making at all; it was merely the hormones of a highly lascivious pregnant woman in desperate need for sex.

As soon as they reached the inn in Boston just before six, they locked themselves up in their room and were quite literally unable to keep their hands off from each other for the rest of the evening.

He then watched her sleep, almost unable now to even breathe after quenching his wife's lusty thirst for intercourse, a feat he was more than willing to comply with. He smiled and saw her lie on her side, the golden halo of hair crowning her head around the pillow.

He smirked and ran his hand down her face, body and over the bulge where his child was kept. "You are absolutely insane, my lady Swan…" He whispered, his hand feeling the mild movements of their baby within her. "And I love you precisely for it…" He kissed her cheek and pulled the quilt over both of them before turning off the light. "Goodnight, Emma…"

Emma barely managed to grumble a groggy, "G'night Killunnn" before she turned in with a huge smile on her face.

Didn't take long for both of them to zonk away; They'd be up early the next day to visit the group home.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"This place is… cold." Snow shivered as she huddled against David, who held a now toddler Neal with one arm as he wrapped his other around his wife.

"Yeah, but have you seen the chandeliers?" David smiled as he looked up.

"Homesick, are you, Charming?" Snow turned with a happy grin.

He smiled at his princess wife. "Home is where you are…"

They leaned in for a kiss.

"Ugh, you guys? Come on, I have enough with the Pirate and the Savior smooching on a daily basis!" Henry moaned as he walked down the stairs slowly, with Lilly stepping down beside him, her hand holding his and going one step at a time.

"Hey!" snow walked to them. "How are you two guys finding it here?"

"AWESOME!" Lilly shouted.

Henry laughed. "I was gonna say that. Yeah, it's pretty cool, there's like… ten rooms in this place, which is really kinda great, because I get a room, and she gets a room, and they get a room… REALLY far from mine, thank god, and there's a nursery for the baby that's coming too… Oh, and you guys get the guest room, which is actually pretty cool, so yeah, we're… pretty set." Henry nodded as he looked around. "And wait till you see the garden…"

"Nonnie!" Lilly held her arms up for Snow.

Snow smiled and picked her up. "Wow, Lilly, you're getting heavier!" She turned to Henry. "So, they left earlier today?"

"When will they be back?" David quipped as he avoided a hair tug from his son. "Just so we know how much to pack."

"Three days!" Lilly replied with a huge smile.

Henry laughed. "No, sis, a week. They said a week."

"Nnnnnope!" Lilly shook her head, still grinning. "Three… days."

Snow, Henry and David exchanged looks. Charming paced towards his granddaughter. "What makes you say that, Lilly?"

The little girl chuckled. "Surprise…."

"You have a surprise, or they do?" Henry smiled.

Lilly rolled her eyes around and began humming.

"Oh, that's classy, young lady!" Snow laughed. "Wind us all up and then be coy!" she tickled the little girl and Lilly squirmed in her arms, giggling up a storm, her pigtails clad with dark curls bouncing up and down.

"She's fierce, you have no idea…" Henry smiled.

Snow sighed. "Just like her mom, I guess…"

"Swodfight!" sLilly laughed and wriggled herself free from Snow, who placed her on the floor.

Lilly ran to grab her plastic sword and Henry complied by using an old wooden spoon he used to play "swords" with his sister. He turned to look at his grandparents as he tried to avoid the deadly blows his little sister was dishing out. "Dad's actually teaching us ALL how to swordfight… she didn't want to be left out."

_Clack-clack-clackity-clack._

"Run! It's Lilly the Merciless!" Henry laughed as he fake-fought the little girl.

"YOU COWADDD!" Lilly shouted back. "GARRRR!"

David smiled. "That's not much like a princess there, Lilly Jones!"

Lilly turned to her grandfather, and raised an eyebrow up high. "No, cuz I'm a pidate, mate!"

That, together with the look of utter shock and mock loss on David's face, managed to bring the house down… and the lights flickered.

"Whoa…" David looked around.

"Oh, yeah. Forgot to tell you… " Henry sighed. "She got her magic back."

Snow raised her eyebrows and nodded. "Oh! That's great, sweetie, and what can you do?"

Lilly then turned to Snow and nodded, her eyes suddenly darkened playfully.

She flicked her little hand, albeit a little bit clumsily…

"What the… LILLY!" David moaned.

Snow turned to look at her husband and she exploded into laughter, seeing he was suddenly dressed like an American Football player… and Neal was the football, his chubby legs and arms sticking out from the hilarious costume.

Both snow and Henry hee-hawed hysterically and Lilly bit her lower lip.

"Oh, come on!" David whined again.

"Lilly…." Henry bent down to his sister, trying to control his chortling. "What did mom and dad tell you about playing jokes on our grandparents while they were here?"

Lilly bit her tongue and giggled. "OK…" she chuckled and flicked her hand, making David go back to normal.

Snow wound down and took Neal from David's arms, still laughing as she caressed his cheek. "You have to admit though, Charming… that was pretty hilarious…"

"Yeah…" David rolled his eyes to the little girl, who stood there, a finger to her lips, cheekily swaying side to side as she looked up at her grandfather, a challenging eyebrow quirked all the way up, a look David had seen far too many times on Killian. "She's right… she's no princess. She's EVERYTHING like her pirate father… COME HERE, DREAD PIRATE LILLY!"

"Naaaaawww!" Lilly screamed and ran across the room, laughing, with her grandfather in hot pursuit. He caught her and she screamed with joy. "Oh, I got you finally, Dread Pirate Lilly!"

"Nooo, I am Lilly the _messiless_!" She laughed back as David tickled her.

"Ohhh, that's even worse! Well, Lilly the Merciless, I'm Prince Charming, and I'm telling you, all acts of piracy are punishable by … hanging by their ankles!"

He picked her up and hung her upside down by her ankles, much to her and Henry's unbelievable amusement and Snow's determent.

That night, once Lilly's sugar high had worn down and she was sleeping soundly, David and Snow recapped while she tried to get Neal to wind down.

"Henry told me she can actually make dancing lights." Snow spoke softly, setting the young boy down. "And that she actually writes now… on a whiteboard in her room." Snow shook her head. "Do you remember what Gold said?"

"Yeah, that she would be as powerful as Regina by the time she was three…" David nodded. "But she's a kid, Snow. She's got a good little heart, I wouldn't worry."

"I don't." Snow smiled. "She's got good parents who love her, Emma has magic, she will probably help her harness her own."

David looked up at his wife. "Is he asleep now? Neal?"

Snow turned to look at the little boy who seemed to be just about to doze off. "Almost." She replied with a smile. She then looked at her husband. "Do you ever wonder if Neal might have magic too?" she shrugged. "Seems to be a trait of little Products of True Love…"

"Well, if he does, he'll have a hell of a niece and sister to help him out on how to use it." David chuckled. Both fell silent and after a minute, Charming stood up and paced to her, putting an arm around her shoulders and looking down at the sleeping boy. "Sometimes…" He sighed. "I look at him and I think of Emma… I try to imagine myself watching her at that age… watching her sleeping." He looked at Snow and smiled. "Playing with Lilly today, I couldn't help wondering… would Emma have been that way too? Was she the little Killian Jones Junior Lilly is, or would she have sat down with a tea set?" He chuckled. "I just… felt I did something right today, Snow. Chasing that little girl around was the closest I've ever been to little Emma." He shrugged and smiled broadly. "Even if she looks and behaves a whole lot more like the pirate."

Snow sighed with a grin as she placed her hands on David's chest. "Then keep doing it, David… because you do it really, really well."

He kissed her forehead and the two embraced. "Do you suppose Emma will actually find those files on her childhood? That we'll actually see some photos of her when she was a kid?"

Snow sighed deep as her husband rocked her from side to side. "I hope so…."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Emma Swan ran away after only two weeks at the Jeffries household in Portland. For a week and a half she managed to make it in the streets, hiding under bridges and sneaking into empty homes, until she met a young girl who also seemed to have been on the run and who helped her out of more than one sticky situation.

Lilly Tanner was her name. They became good friends.

Then Lilly Tanner was found… by her father. Her adoptive father. She was not like Emma at all… she was not running from the system.

She did not know what it was like to get shouted at by Paula Jeffries.

She did not know what it was like to get lashed with John Jeffries's belt buckle.

She did not know what it was like to have another foster kid aged seventeen sneak into her bed and fondle her while you are trying to sleep… repeatedly.

She did not know what it was like to have to hide her rations of food.

She knew nothing.

And now, because of that, they had been caught and Emma had to go back to the system.

Emma was not taken back to the Jeffries; she was placed in another home while another foster home was found.

And again… she tried to run.

And she never stopped running.

The system stopped chasing her when she was seventeen.

And all the while, Emma kept saying to herself that happiness was just around the corner.

And right around the corner was a charming, handsome young car thief named Neal Cassidy… who swooped her heart away when she stole a car he had stolen.

For a while, she thought she would be going back to Boston, to tell Mrs. Bailey that she had found happiness. Neal was a rough but happy little scoundrel with a light hearted laugh and a smile that could melt the ice caps…

He was also the man with whom she lost her virginity. She trusted him that much. He offered her a home, a life… a roof; they even chose Tallahassee to settle down.

He turned out to be the father of her first-born son… and the reason she spent nearly a year in jail. Broken hearted, she retook her mantra: Happiness is just around the corner.

Then, one day, she stopped saying it… basically because she stopped believing it. She was living in her car, she had given up her baby, she was unemployed, nineteen, an ex-con and had been duped one too many times to ever believe she would find happiness at all.

Later in the night, after she and Killian had made love at least three times (enough to quench the horny quota her pregnant hormones demanded of her), she woke up for a midnight toilet break. Being pregnant with Lilly had been easier, but she had had no partner to share it with. Coming out of the bathroom, she stood by the door and stared at captain Hook as she slept: His arm hung from the mattress and his face was pressed against the pillow, pushing his lips in an awkward pout. His hair was disheveled and tousled, his other arm twisted and placed atop the small of his back, and half of his butt was uncovered, as his leg and foot also hung from the side of the bed.

He was snoring as well.

But Emma smiled.

Neal, she now knew, had had no choice in the past; he HAD to leave her to her fate. He had given her a wonderful son, Henry, whom she now had as a permanent asset in her life. He had given her a chance to become who she really was; he had given her a little shove out of the low-life they had both dwelled in by letting her do time; he had come back as a friend, a good friend… and he had passed away pretty much knowing there was no doubt who the one to keep her heart would be. Neal had very much handed the torch to Killian, an act that no doubt would have hurt, but that he knew was inevitable and for the best.

Had it not been for Neal, Emma would have never had Henry… and perhaps would have never gotten to meet her family again… or Hook.

And now, there he was, that fairy-tale Pirate Captain who once had a hook for a hand; a man who was just as lost as she had been… a man who had also lost hope at some point, no longer counting days or wishing for a brighter tomorrow…

Emma felt the baby kick. Hard.

"Ow, easy kid, you still have sixteen weeks to go till Independence Day…" She smiled and caressed her stomach.

Just then, Killian moved. He inhaled deeply and turned around, now facing up, looking deliciously naked and peaceful beyond her every idea of peace. "Emma…" he whispered, before settling down with a smile that disappeared as he resumed snoring softly.

Her heart jumped.

And the baby jumped again as well.

"Fine, ok… I'm going now…" she laughed softly as she headed for the bed.

Before walking around the mattress, she pulled the blanket up and covered Killian before kissing his forehead; the captain frowned, then grinned and sighed.

He stopped snoring and simply drew in deep, deep breaths, a mild grin still plastered on his face. Her heart was still warm from his words, his story of how he was lost until she came into his life… And as she settled beside him, scooting into the crook of his neck over his arm, tugging the blanket over her shoulders, she sighed with contentment.

Apparently, the best had indeed been waiting for both of them, lost souls, around the corner, the whole time.

Happiness had been found.

And Emma couldn't wait to find Mrs. Bailey so she could meet her handsome knight in shining armor.

Or pirate.


	39. Full Cirlce

**THIS CHAPTER IS A BIT LONGER!**

**I WANNA THANK THE FOLLOWS AND FOLLOWERS, THE FAVS AND READERS, THE REVIEWS AND THE REVIEWERS! YOU GUYS ARE REALLY GREAT AND I AM SO GRATEFUL TO YOU ALL FOR THE ONGOING SUPPORT THIS STORY HAS GOTTEN. WE'RE CLOSING IN TO A GOOD, HAPPY ENDING. STILL 3 MORE TO GO!**

A prolonged and pained sigh left Emma's mouth as she stood by the open door of the bug early the following morning. She leaned against the rounded hooded wheel and involuntarily caressed her own bulging tummy (perhaps subconsciously trying to assure her baby that he / she would never, ever want for love and home). She looked up at the place that had seen her grow during the first thirteen years of her life, and while it had changed a bit, it was for the most part exactly the way she remembered it.

Thirteen years is a long, long time.

Especially for a child.

She vaguely heard the sound of Killian's side door closing and his footsteps on the gravel as he walked around the car and joined her at her side, also looking up at the building.

"So… is this it?" He asked softly.

"Yeah…" She uttered from miles away.

_Why, this is absolute bloody luxury! Try sleeping in a hole on the wall, under a bridge and with a blood-spewing cough at the age of five_, Killian though, but worded nothing. He knew well that time, circumstances and realms made quite a difference in their equally miserable childhoods, and it all boiled down to the exact same predicament: In his own words, an orphan is an orphan. The pain of being rejected by a parent (or two, and twice in Emma's case) is something a child carries with himself for a very long time, and scars of such magnitude don't easily disappear. Killian silently grabbed her hand and grinned.

"Hey… I'm right here. We've come a long way, Swan, let's get your dress from this lady and we can stop by for hot cocoa on our way back to the inn…"

She nodded absently. "Yeah, I also saw a Toys'R'Us deposit on the highway, I'd like to pick out some things for Lilly, and get Henry an iPod, I do know he wanted one of those pretty badly, and some stuff for the nursery and…"

"Swan!" Killian smiled. "First things first, love? You're stalling."

Emma huffed and grinned as she closed her eyes. "Yeah. You're right. I can do this…."

He grinned back at her and squeezed her hand. "Nothing the savior can't handle."

She and Killian approached the door and rang the bell.

Memories began to flood her mind as soon as she saw the little horde of young girls that looked through the door glass at a couple that to them, represented potential parents, almost like waiting for Christmas morning. They scanned Killian and Emma from head to toes, toothy and toothless grins, clean, de-liced, wearing perfectly washed and stitched second hand clothes handed down from the Salvation Army and any and every other charity.

They all tried so hard…

They all smiled so broadly….

They all hurt so badly.

How many times had she been the one to run to the door whenever someone knocked? And how long until she grew tired of believing? When had hopelessness taken over her heart? How old was she when she stopped running to the door?

"Killian…" Emma sighed, leaning into him.

The pirate said nothing. He simply cradled her in his arms and whispered a soft "Shhh…".

Then the door opened and a young woman dressed in what looked like The Blue Fairy's Nun uniform smiled at them at the door. "Come on girls, get back inside… " She turned to them. "Hi, welcome to Twin Cities Group Home for Girls. Can I help you?"

Emma forced herself to smile. "H… Hi. Listen, I… used to… live here, a while ago. A long time ago, actually, and… I was kind of hoping you'd let me know if a lady called Mrs. Bailey still lives here or if she moved out or passed away or…"

"Oh!" the woman's smile broadened. "You must be Emma. Emma Swan."

Both Emma and Killian looked slightly stumped.

"Yeah…" Emma nodded, her mouth hanging. "How did you…?"

"Oh, Isabella has been talking about you for years! I recognize you from the hair, she always said you had this amazing, blond mane and I guess she wasn't far off the mark." She opened the door for the couple. "I'm Dawn, I teach music and Spanish."

"Spanish? They teach Spanish now?" Emma sneered.

"We do." Dawn nodded as she allowed Emma and Hook enter behind her. "We've made a lot of improvements here, in the past six years, especially." She led them to an empty hall that Emma remembered clearly as the dining hall, except now the tables were folded against the far wall, waiting for the three o'clock bell to ring, calling the girls to eat. "It's sad that while economy prospers, more and more couples choose not to raise their children. In ten years, all group homes and orphanages nationwide have doubled their capacity. There's just… so many of them, poor little souls." She sighed and shrugged and both Emma and Killian could have sworn they felt a little piece of their hearts being chipped away by a feeling only orphans could know of.

"I swear this room was bigger when I lived here." Emma smiled, looking around. "The paint is different; the stage looks the same and oh! Look, we didn't have curtains back then! Or a garden!"

Dawn turned to look into Killian's eyes before once again addressing Emma. "If you'll excuse me, I'll go find Isabella, see if she's already awake." She shrugged. "She's a bit older now, sometimes it takes her a while to get started in the day. Please, make yourselves at _home_, I will be down shortly."

Dawn disappeared and Emma sighed, leaning her head on Killian's shoulder. "Home…"

"I know darling." He leaned his head on hers. "That got to me as well."

Killian let go of Emma and paced to a piano. He grinned and lifted the lid, plinking around the keys while Emma looked around with a mixed sense of nostalgia, joy and sadness; the air ducts had been replaced by air conditioners and dehumidifiers. Grass and a playground had replaced the large patio outside with the massive basketball hoops, with a smaller basketball court on the side. There was a tree house and the walls were taller but colorfully painted and they actually had flowers now.

But… an orphan's an orphan.

Killian had been right from the get go.

Emma returned to his side and felt herself wrap her arms around his waist from behind, leaning her head on his shoulder blade. "What's that about love?" he smiled, still plinking at the piano.

"Just… grateful for everything, I guess. My mom and dad, Henry, Lilly… You, our baby…"

He sighed and turned around with a grin.

Neither said a word; they simply held each other.

"Good gracious…" Came a familiar voice from the door. "You are every bit the princess I last saw, only ten times more beautiful!"

Emma smiled and walked swiftly to Mrs. Bailey, who held one arm out, her other hand firmly grasping a walker; Emma hugged her hard. "Look at you!" The old woman smiled into Emma's shoulder. "All grown up and oh…" She looked down at Emma's stomach. "What is this?"

Emma smiled broadly and walked back to Killian, pulling him to the older lady that awaited them both with a smile.

"Mrs. B., this is Killian, my husband."

Killian nodded courteously. "Hello."

"Dear me…" Mrs. Bailey's eyes widened as she eyed Killian up and down. "He is drop dead gorgeous, dear, you did well, didn't you?"

Emma expected a 'devilishly handsome' remark from Killian, so she was fairly surprised to see him blush, grin, look down and kind of shuffle his foot. Emma turned back to her and sighed. "Well, you did tell me to come back and tell you when I had found that… proverbial happiness around the corner, so…" She shrugged. "Here we are!"

Mrs. Bailey sighed deep. "And you didn't forget… Oh, dear little Emma." She turned to look at Killian. "I always knew she was special. From the moment she was brought here as a little, little baby girl, I knew she was something else."

"Aye, that she is, every bit." Killian smiled, looking at Emma, studying her face with awe. "She's a bloody marvel, my Swan."

Mrs. B's eyes widened. "And he's British?" She looked back at Emma. "You REALLY did well for yourself!" She looked back at Killian. "Whereabouts are you from? My late husband, bless his soul, his parents were from Ipswich. He was a second generation Englishman though, so he really didn't have that lovely accent you posses. Where were you born?"

Emma turned sharply to Killian, but the man simply grinned and held his head up. "_Southwickamshireuponworcester_, love. Sullenshore."

Emma bit her lip and nodded to Mrs. Bailey. "Yeah. Naval academy there."

Mrs. Bailey nodded. "That must be close to Southampton, then. Sounds like it."

"That's precisely right, milady." He grinned.

How the hell had he even remembered that name she had made up three years earlier? HOW?

She wasn't the only 'bloody amazing' one there, she knew for sure as she grabbed a hold of his arm.

"Well, if you two would like to go to the lounge? I'll be with you shortly, just have to go ring the bell." She smiled, seeing Emma's saddened expression. "It's almost lunch time for the little ladies…"

As they sat in the cozy little waiting area (that had been completely refurbished), they both looked at Mrs. Bailey as she slowly glided out of the room.

Emma turned sharply to Hook. "How the hell did you remember that stupid name, Killian?" She chuckled, half whispering.

Killian giggled back. "Sea Captain, love. I remember the name of each and every port, town and city I have ever visited. Even those that don't exist." He raised both eyebrows, a quirky grin on his face.

Emma closed her eyes and smiled. "You are such a huge nerd."

"What is a nerd, exactly?"

"I'll explain all that when we get back home… "

One thing hadn't changed: The sound of the buzzer bell. Emma closed her eyes. "Playtime… and ten minutes later, lunch time."

Killian grabbed her hand. "Looks like this lady really cared for you, Swan."

The sound of feet and shoes stampeding past the door and into the garden flooded their ears and they both raised their head in time to see at least a dozen little girls of all denominations running past the door on their way to their playground.

Emma frowned as she turned her head in the direction of the window. She saw smiles and heard giggles as the girls all climbed and swung and slid and climbed again, and Emma didn't recall ever being as happy as they looked.

Maybe she had been; maybe she had only focused too much on the sad parts.

Emma stood up and walked to the door, leaving Killian sitting on the sofa. "Maybe… I should go up by myself…"

"Why, love?"

She shrugged and grinned. "Not because I don't want to share it with you, Killian, I will, I just…." She smiled and looked to the floor. "It's just something I have to do myself… It's my quest, it's my circle… I have to close it. I know you understand that."

Killian looked at her and sighed deep with a grin and a nod. "I'll be right here when you come back, love."

He leaned back and grabbed a random magazine, crossing his legs. Emma smiled at him and turned around.

Mrs. B. was right: Seems she really had done well for herself.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Lilly walked down the stairs (holding on to the wooden rails as she took one step at a time), looking for her older brother; She found Regina sitting around the living room, reading a magazine. She stopped mid stair and frowned, peeking through the rails as she worded a loud "HELLOOOOOO…"

Regina flinched and turned around to find the little girl, holding on to the bars beside her face as she squished it through the bars with a ridiculously Hook-Like grin plastered on her lips.

"Oh, my, is that princess Lilly?" Regina smiled as she stood up, walking to her. "You have grown so much!"

"Aye." The little girl nodded.

"You… don't remember me, do you?" Regina scrunched her nose, still smiling.

"Aye… Gina."

"Wow. Some memory."

The three year old shrugged. "I'm smart."

Regina laughed aloud "Yeah, and you got more from your dad than just your looks, I see…." She cleared her throat. "Listen, is Henry on his way down? I get him for today and…"

Lilly rolled her eyes up to the top of the stairs and made Regina jump once more. "HENDYYYYY!"

Regina chuckled. "Queen _Degina_ is here to… to take you todaaayyy!"

"That's…. quite a holler." Regina smiled and grimaced, taking a finger to her ear. "Big house I suppose."

The little girl huffed. "Daddy said that… dis is a big ship."

"Yeah, he would know…" Regina's attention was drawn by the sound of Henry's large, teenage feet stomping above her head on the first floor landing and then as they trotted down the stairs. "What are you doing here, sis? Grandma's going ballistic, looking for you up there."

"Shhhh…" she smiled. "I am hiding!"

"Hidden in plain sight. Yep. I see Hook AND Emma Swan in this one…" Regina shook her head and sighed.

"Lilly?" Came Snow's call.

The little girl's eyes widened and she grinned, her lip bitten as she stifled a chuckle. She then simply muttered a soft. "Ok, bye bye now…" And before Regina's and Henry's bewildered gazes, she raised a little hand and amidst a little cloud of pink smoke… she poofed herself away.

"WHAT THE…?" Henry exclaimed.

Regina took two steps back, gasping as she did. "It took me two whole years to learn how to poof myself out of a place. Who the heck is teaching this little girl?"

"Mom, I swear to god, I had never seen her do this."

Regina huffed, and shook her head as she placed her hands on her hips. "Her parents will have a cow when they find out… Though I gotta say…" she grinned. "It is pretty amazing."

"Lilly, where are you? Oh… Hi Regina!" Snow smiled amicably at the former mayor of the town. "Didn't hear you come in, I…" She shook her head and looked around. "You guys didn't see Lilly, did you? She was in the nursery a minute ago and when I turned it's like she had suddenly…"

"Poofed away?" Regina smiled wryly.

"Grandma, we have a problem." Henry nodded.

Snow huffed hard and her shoulders fell. "Oh, no. Another villain?"

Regina shook her head and looked down. "The undetected magical skill in this family saddens me."

"Grandma, Lilly just… really… Poofed away."

Snow stared into Henry's eyes for a few seconds before she held her hands up. "Okay… WHAT?"

Regina looked back up into Snow's eyes. "You heard. When you called out for her, she waved her hand and then just… vanished into pink smoke. We're not even close to kidding." She shook her head. "I had never heard of a child with such a developed skill of magic. How old is she, two?"

"She's three." Snow heaved. "So basically, she could be ANYWHERE in town right now." She ran a hand through her hair. "Oh god, she's by herself? Hook and Emma will slaughter me! I was just drawing her bath and she just… Oh, god!"

Regina was about to reassure her that it would be easy to find her when David came in the front door, carrying two children in his arms. He had taken Neal to the hospital to get a round of vaccines, and had found Lilly hiding behind a lamppost just outside the door. "Hey." He smiled.

When Snow heaved with relief, David frowned. "I found this little lost girl outside, why the heck wasn't she indoors?"

He placed Lilly down and henry went to her, going down on his knees. "Lilly, listen to me: DO NOT POOF AWAY AGAIN! Ok? I am every bit serious about this, or I will tell mom and dad that you were naughty while they were away ok? Now, go with Grandma to take your bath!"

The look Lilly gave to Snow reminded her of Hook during the days where all he wanted was to kill Gold.

"She… poofed away from you?" David sneered. "When the heck did she learn to do that?"

Henry sighed as he stood back up. "I have NO idea."

When Snow collected the little girl, she suddenly dealt with a more traditional (albeit equally annoying) toddler tantrum. "And cry and scream all you like, Lilly Jones, you are NOT to poof away on me AGAIN! EVER!" She turned to Regina with an apologetic face. "She's sleepy." She turned back to Lilly, who was now kicking and screaming. "Ok, now belt up, young lady! Let's go take your bath…"

"NAAAAAAAAAAAWWWW!"

The lights flickered and a couple of glasses broke.

"You are NOT gonna impress me with your little light show, Lilly, now COME ON!" Snow toughened up. "And if you continue screaming and breaking your mom and dad's stuff, you will NOT be watching Backyardigans before bedtime! I mean it!" She turned a kind smile to Regina. "You guys have a nice day. Henry, if you're going to stay over with your mom, please just give us a call, ok?"

The child whimpered and tightened her lips, her chin quivering and her gaze pure anger.

"She whines and throws tantrums…" Regina smiled as Snow finally disappeared with Lilly up the stairs, turning to look at David. "I wonder where she got that from. Oh… wait!"

David stared daggers at Regina before turning around and sitting in the living room, placing his son down to let him pace around a little. "Don't even look at us. She's the daughter of a bona-fide pirate; She's bound to be a little… raucous."

"Yeah." Regina nodded. "And Emma's gracefulness at mowing down apple trees and throwing punches shouldn't be taken into account either." Regina grinned as David huffed and shook his head. "Actually, the magic part, she gets from her mother. The interesting part about all this and the one you should all worry about is the fact that she's three and she can do things that took me YEARS to nail down."

"She won't do it again." Henry shook his head. "All it takes for her to stop is for me to tell her not to."

Suddenly, Lilly emerged from another pink cloud of smoke, naked and crying, in the middle of the room. "NO NO NO, PLEEZ NO BATH!"

"You were saying?" Regina grinned at her son before huffing. "All right. Your grandmother will burst a vessel and get a nosebleed if she keeps running up and down the stairs like this, so…" she flicked her hand and neutralized Lilly's magic temporarily, at least while Hook and Emma returned from their trip to Boston. The child instantly felt it and turned a scared and startled face to Regina as she desperately tried to poof her way out of there. Snow came back down and glared at the child as she stomped down the stairs. "LILLY JONES!"

Regina turned to Snow. "She's not going anywhere, Snow; I've neutralized her, at least until her mom and dad return and they have to deal with it." She then turned to the little girl. "Now, I am not your mommy or your grandma, so I certainly don't have to spoil you rotten…" Regina approached Lilly's face with a dangerously wicked grin. "But you WILL listen to me now: I know you're smart and normally, I really like you. But right now, you are being a spoiled little brat, Lilly. And since you're so smart and you have ALWAYS understood everything that happens around you, let me tell you something else: Magic is not a toy. You have a huge gift, and an equally huge responsibility with it! You are NOT to trifle with it at all, because all magic has a price, kid. And when you use it to scare people or run away, you WILL pay it. So just be good to your grandparents, because even if it's a LOT of fun to see them in the dire straits, you are making them suffer and THAT will come down on your little curly head like one of your daddy's boots. So you WILL behave, you will go upstairs with your grandmother and take your bath and you will do as you're told for as long as they are here with you… or I will come back and you and I will have another happy little chat." She approached another inch. "Are… we … clear?"

Lilly was wide-eyed, but didn't look scared. Or angry, either.

She gulped and nodded. "Yes, Gina." She muttered.

"Good." Regina smiled. "Now, you will apologize to your grandmother and your brother. "

Lilly turned a dead serious face over to Snow. "Sorry, Nonnie." And then to Henry. "Sorry, Hendy."

David and Snow were stupefied, as Regina stood straight. "Now, run along and let your grandmother bathe you. Be a good girl."

With a little heave, Lilly silently paced to Snow and reached up to grab her hand. She walked alongside her Grandma, who turned back to Regina and mouthed a notable "Thank you!" to the Queen.

Henry huffed and turned to her mother. "Holy… cow…"

"You are scary." David nodded with a grin.

"To a snivelly shepherd gone prince, perhaps." She grinned as she put her jacket on. "But between wizards, this is pretty standard stuff. That child has had the mind of an adult in many aspects for a very long time now. She has to start learning to leash her powers and not use them so leisurely."

David shrugged. "She's a good kid, I'm sure she doesn't mean to…"

"Look, 'Charming'… " Regina stopped him. "Having a skill like the one she does can either enhance her heart… or blacken it. She is the youngest wizard with such power I know of and I've yet to see what she can do. And as you could see, she damn well understands what she's doing. If she starts using her magic to get away with doing things, before you know it, you'll have another little Zelena or Ingrid or Rumple… or me." She huffed. "I'm a grown adult and it took pains to get me to understand this. Not to mention, your wife was pretty insufferable as a kid and I will be doing Swan and captain Doe-eyes a huge favor if I help them straighten out their offspring a bit from as early as right now, trust me. So the sooner, the better."

David sighed and nodded. "You may have a point there…"

"I always do. Henry?" She turned to her son. "Are you ready?"

A stunned Henry nodded and grabbed his jacket as he followed his mother out the door. He turned to David. "I have my phone, call me if you guys need anything, ok?"

The house was silent and David used the time to play with his son. About an hour and half later, an exhausted-looking Mary Margaret paced down the stairs. David chuckled at the sight of her.

"Seems she really turned out to be quite a handful…"

"David, I don't know WHAT we're going to do when Neal is her age." She slumped down on the sofa.

Charming put an arm around her. "Is she sleeping?"

"Yep… like a log." She nestled under her husband's arm. "Say what you like about Regina, but she does know her stuff…"

"Do you suppose Lilly did understand what she said?"

Snow chuckled. "I'm pretty sure of it. She behaved like an angel after she got scolded, didn't even wait for her movie before she was already out like a light." She remained silent for a few seconds. "David?"

"Yeah?"

"I love our family."

"I know, sweetheart, so do I."

"And I love our granddaughter…"

"Sure you do."

"But if she does this again, can we call Regina and ask her to turn her into a bonsai? We could just water her and set her under the sun till Emma and Killian come home…"

"WHAT?"

Snow laughed and looked at him with kind eyes. "You are the most gullible…" He placed a hand over her mouth with a smile.

"And you do have a streak of muddy slush in you, Snow White…" He smiled.

"I… might do…" She narrowed her eyes. "So… Henry's out, Lilly's asleep for the next two hours and Neal's just about to drop dead as well any time. What do you say we…" She winked. "…Make use of that extra large bed we have in that guest room of hours? We'll see just how slushy I can be."

David grinned and bent in to kiss her. "You are singing my kind of song."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Killian looked at the children all running around the playground; some pushing, some playing, some bullying and some sitting alone with a toy or in a sand box. He tried to imagine a young, child-like Emma; given her magical nature, he really didn't imagine she'd be out in the playground; she herself had said she never really had any friends because they all called her a freak.

It saddened him to think of Emma as the only child that would likely stay indoors during recreation time, probably reading a book or fiddling through Mrs. Bailey's things or…

"Oh… sorry, I…" came a young voice from the door. Killian turned sharply and found a girl, with ginger hair reaching her shoulders, lots of freckles and huge, brown eyes. She was roughly twelve. "I thought no one was here, I'll just…" She grinned awkwardly and started to shuffle out.

"No, love, it's quite all right…." Killian smiled, holding his ringed hand out. "I'm fairly harmless. Please do come in…"

The girl grinned and shyly stepped into the lounge. "Are you… here to… adopt a kid?"

Killian noticed she was embracing a copy of "Moby Dick", a story he had learned about during his days in the academy… except that, of course, in his realm, it was not at all a story. He smiled and nervously scratched the back of his ear. "My wife grew up here. She wanted to visit Mrs. Bailey. She's probably upstairs with her now."

"Oh." The girl responded. "So… you don't mind if I… sit here and read?"

Killian grinned. "Why not at all. " he nodded in the direction of the book. "That's quite a tale you got there."

She smiled softly as she sat down on the couch in front of him. "it's my favorite."

"It is?"

"Yeah. This and '20 thousand leagues under the sea'…"

Killian chuckled softly. "I see you enjoy sea fairing stories." He stood up and walked to a couch closer to the girl's. "I could regale you with a real story of the sort."

The girl looked at him, her huge brown eyes wide and studying every inch of his face. "How? Are you a sailor?"

"A captain, actually." He smiled fully.

"Aren't you… a bit young to be a captain?" She frowned. "Captain Ahab was old… and bearded."

"Aye, that he was." Killian sighed, remembering his accounts of the story of Moby Dick. "But then, I'm a lot older than I look."

The girl grinned at him. "So… you know this story?"

"Aye love… and I know a few others that are far better." He nodded.

"C… can you tell me?" she asked wide-eyed.

"tell you what, love: I'll trade you. You tell me your name, I will tell you the story."

The girl squinted. "I may be an orphan, but I know better than to trust a stranger with my name."

Killian laughed aloud. "You are so spirited! But trust me, love, I am not here to cause anyone any harm. Like I said, I am just waiting for my wife to come downstairs… so…" he raised his eyebrows. "We've a deal?"

The girl studied his face. "Heather." She held her hand out.

"Killian." He held her hand back with a smile. "How old are you, Heather?"

The girl squinted again. "What? That wasn't part of the bargain."

"You're a distrustful little miss, aren't you?"

"You'd be surprised the things that can happen to orphan girls." She replied bluntly. "People think that because we have no mom or dad they can use us for whatever stupid thing they want. We HAVE to be distrustful."

Killian nodded. "Fair enough; here…" Killian reached for his wallet and produced a small photograph of himself with Emma, Lilly and Henry. "There you go. Does that look like the face of a man you can't trust? Or if it so pleases you, lass, I can show you my driver's license from Maine…"

The girl looked at the photograph with a sad smirk. "You look all so happy…"

He sighed sad as he took the photo from her. "Aye…"

She looked at him and swallowed. "I'm twelve. I will be thirteen in two weeks, which means soon I'll get kicked out of here and be thrown around from foster home to foster home. I know how the system works." She shrugged. "Too old to get adopted."

Killian had heard those words before.

He studied her face and caught something in her eyes, a look he knew all too well, from the Lost Boys in Neverland, from his brother and himself… and from Emma.

The ginger girl huffed. "Ok, I've told you my name and my age… now my story?"

"Aye, lass, I promised you a story and a story you shall have." He nodded "There was once an adventurous lad, who came from a wealthy family. His name was David Jones…"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"It all looks exactly the way I remember it." Emma smiled as she looked around the older Mrs. Bailey's room. "At least this room hasn't changed."

"I like to keep things the way they are, dear." Mrs. Bailey sighed. "My life is pretty much all I have left. And the girls too." She smiled at Emma as she sat down. "So, he really is quite a catch."

"Hmm?" Emma turned to her, brows raised.

"Your husband. He's a handsome fella."

"Oh, yeah." Emma chuckled as she reached out for a string of pearls that hung from the oval mirror. "Don't let HIM hear that, though… he's already got a pretty high opinion regarding his own looks."

Mrs. Bailey shrugged. "Nothing wrong with accepting your assets."

Mrs. B. nodded. "Is he kind to you?"

Emma laughed. "Yep. He's the best." She shrugged. "We have a hell of a story, but in the end, we were really made for one another."

The old woman nodded. "First baby?"

"Hell no." Emma shook her head, running her finger down the old drapes that still hung on her window. "Technically, my fourth. I had Henry when I was eighteen. Then Lilly, she's three. Then there was Nicholas, but…" she shrugged, still ached at the memory. "I miscarried."

"Oh my dear, I am so sorry!"

"That's ok. Like Killian says, it was just not meant to be. And now we have… this little one." Emma looked down on herself and rubbed her tummy. "Although we have no clue if that's a boy or a girl yet."

"Killian, is it? Good name. Handsome, loving and devoted. Not a common asset amongst med these days. You are fortunate." Mrs. Bailey nodded.

Emma turned sharply to Mrs. B.; Her comment made her think hard on the times she had hated her magical skills and how difficult it had been to accept them; now she could not imagine speaking her own name without it encompassing her unbelievable magical abilities. Not o mention the life she had now. Emma Swan… Jones. Married. Mother of three kids.

"That's true, I am fortunate." Emma grinned as she sat on the large chest at the foot of Mrs. Bailey's bed. "God, I used to love coming here, digging into your closet and chest. No regard for your personal space whatsoever." She chuckled. "It was the only place I felt… safe."

The woman smiled kindly. "Yes. I do remember."

Emma looked at her. "You were right about so many things…."

"Emma…" The lady sighed. "…I have worked with orphan girls since I was maybe younger than you. And I have seen each and every one turn into something wonderful. Of course I was right, I always am. Do you remember your bully, Melissa Winters?"

"How can I forget her?"

"She now lives in the Arctic; trying to save polar bears." She smiled. "She went through rough times, like you did, but in the end, she found her way and made peace with life by helping some less fortunate creatures. She's got two wonderful sons, was divorced, but found another man who just adores her. I get a postcard from her from time to time." She shrugged hard. "I don't do e-mail or any of that modern stuff…"

Emma grinned; for all the times she had wished for that girl to swirl down the drainpipe as she was growing, now she kind of hoped to meet her someday for a chat. "That's pretty awesome."

"Did you keep the little necklace I gave you? The one you and Melissa fought over?"

Emma chuckled sadly. "It was stolen from me at one of the foster homes… some little jerk named Kevin." She sighed. "But I still have it with me." She smirked as she showed Mrs. Bailey the flower tattoo on her wrist.

Mrs. B. laughed softly. She reached out for Emma and held her hands in hers. "I always knew you were a special girl, Emma Swan. So… tell me… what became of you, after you left the system?"

Emma sighed and shrugged. "I did time, actually. That's where my first son was born. Henry isn't biologically Killian's, his father… well, he kind of sold me out, let me take the fall for something he had done. Did eleven months. Then after that, I left the Penn and straightened myself out, found a job, an apartment and just sort of… lived on a day-to-day basis. Then years later I…" She smiled. "I actually found my parents."

"You did?"

"Yeah." Emma nodded with a mild grin. "Turns out you were right about that too. They left me because they were in a really, really desperate situation, but as it turns out, there was not a day that went by when they didn't think of me or ache for me." She shrugged and chuckled. "You could say I saved them, when I found them. Now we're really, really close. Oh, and I have a brother!"

"That is truly amazing, dear!"

"As for Killian, like I said, he and I started off on the wrong foot, but, to be honest, we kind of… hit it off from the beginning. I was too scared to let him in for a long time, but he stuck to me and never let me down, ever. We got together, then we were sort of forced apart by circumstance… during that split, I found I was pregnant and I had my second baby, Lilly, and then Killian found me again, we got married and we've been together ever since. We live in a small town in Maine and, to be honest… I had never been happier."

Emma deliberately avoided details involving realm crossing, time travel, Wicked Witches and Snow Queens; It was better left untouched.

Mrs. Bailey was smiling from ear to ear. "I knew you would be."

Emma stood up and paced around the room. "Actually, I wanted to ask you for a favor." She turned to look at her. "Killian and I were married while we were away from my parents and his dad and now… well, they're all in our lives and we sort of… want to have a wedding again, you know… so they can be a part of it?"

"You want the dress." Mrs. Bailey grinned wilily.

Emma grinned and blushed. "Look, if you can't part with it, I understand, and I honestly have no compunction against buying one but I do remember how it looked on me and…"

"I only kept it after that time for you, dear." The old lady grinned. "It's in a purple and red tote bag in the third drawer of the cabinet."

Emma smiled, aghast and stunned. "Really?"

"Of course. I always knew you would come back."

Tears threatened to spill from Emma's eyes as she hugged Mrs. B. "Thank you.."

"Go on, girl, take the dress. I'm sure that, given your current state, you'll need to get it fixed…"

"Oh, we have a hell of a tailor team back home." She smiled as she opened the drawer. "Gus & Jack's."

"A tribute to Cinderella's mice, I see…"

"Yep. Exactly." She opened the bag and pulled out the dress. It smelled like mothballs and was slightly yellow, but with a good laundering and the hand of a skilled pair of mice… tailors, she knew it would look amazing on her very pregnant body. "I loved it so much as a child… and now I think I love it even more…" She turned swiftly to the old woman. "Will you come to the wedding?"

Mrs. B laughed heartily. "Oh, my dear Emma, no!"

"What?" Emma winced. "But you have to! I'd love it if you'd…"

"I am an old woman, my dear." She smiled and held her hand out, having Emma reach for it immediately. "My place is here, in the Home, with the girls. They need me, just like you did when you lived here. Besides…" She petted Emma's hand. "You can send me photographs, lots of them. But please, not in that… e-mail monstrosity, I'd never see them. I'm too old for all that garbage."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Emma paced down, a grin plastered on her lips, holding the bag with her 1920's original couture wedding dress rolled up and stuffed in a bag. As she turned to find Killian, she found him engrossed with the girl, Heather. The bell for class had rung and yet, the child had stuck around, listening intently to his narration of Davy Jones. She quietly observed him, his body language and the growing enthusiasm as he explained every detail, every word… and Emma was shocked to find the child was not at all bored or weary; on the contrary, her eyes were wide and her attention span was fully focused on Killian and his narration.

She felt a soft hand touch her shoulder. It was Dawn. "So, did Isabella give you her dress?" she smiled. "We had all insisted on her throwing some things out, but this one…" She shrugged. "She was adamant that she had to keep it for you."

Emma sighed. "Yeah. She kept it." Emma looked up at Killian and the little girl again. "Who is that girl?"

Dawn turned to look at the child and sighed. "Her name is Heather Riley. She arrived here in swaddling clothes. Someone found her in a shopping mall bathroom."

"Jesus…" Emma winced.

"Yeah. Pretty monstrous." She looked at her again. "She's our oldest girl. She still gets bullied a lot because of her freckles and well… you know how it is here. We try to not let bullying take place, but we can't be there all the time every time. And Heather will be thirteen next week, so…"

"Oh no…" Emma turned her face to the girl, her brows an inverted v.

Dawn shrugged. "Emma, I truly wish we could keep them all here until eighteen. We all wish that. But we have no funds. She must go into the system as soon as she's over twelve."

With a sad sigh, Dawn turned and walked away to attend a ringing phone.

Emma looked at the girl and her enthusiasm as she listened to Killian's narrative. She suddenly felt something come alight inside of her; the younger girls still stood a chance, but she knew from personal experience how the odds for finding a home got slimmer as she grew older.

And they had plenty of room… not to mention Killian's newfound status as a nobleman, even if he hated that notion.

And perhaps henry could have a sister just under his age to play video games with or fight with…

Why the hell not?

"Hi!" She smiled as she stepped into the room, interrupting the story.

Heather turned sharply and saw Emma, staring at her from head to toes, before grinning shyly. "Are you…?"

"I'm Emma." She sat in front of the girl and Killian on the coffee table. "Dawn told me your name is Heather?"

"You're lucky, Swan." Killian smirked. "I had to haggle with her to get her bloody name out."

Heather looked at Emma's swollen stomach. "You guys are…. Having a baby."

"Aye, we are." Killian nodded.

"That's really… nice, I guess." She shrugged. "Well, anyway, it was really nice to meet you." Her face saddened as she stood up and grabbed her book, smiling kindly as she paced away.

Both Killian and Emma stared in silent sadness at the space left by the girl.

And like two open books, they only needed to look at each other.

"Should we?" he smirked.

"We totally should." She nodded back. "But… Can we handle it?"

"She's fairly mellow…. Perhaps she can actually help out with Lilly, not to mention Henry might have someone his age to talk to."

Emma side-grinned and looked at him from the corner of her eyes. "You want to adopt a nanny?"

"Emma…" He whispered. "That girl… is you. Now, you were fortunate, your story was unlike any story in this realm. But I seriously doubt that that poor lass will have the same chances you had. Every bit of fear, sadness, and mortification she has in her gaze, I've seen before… in yours. When you wake from a nightmare, when you dwell in the past… matter of fact, not two hours ago as we stood outside this very building. What better way to make peace with your past, love?"

Emma grinned and caressed his cheek, a tear forming and sliding down her own. "You… are… solid… gold."

He smiled and shrugged. "Meh… So we will have four kids at home. I had twenty pirates under my belt once, I'm sure children are far easier to handle…"

She smiled and threw herself at him.

"Ok. Let's do it!"

They both stood up and went to talk to Dawn at the office. She looked stunned but pleased as they explained their reasons and their logic. Dawn grinned and stood up to go talk to Mrs. Bailey and returned ten minutes later, smiling fully. "Well, Isabella says she trusts you with her life, but that nevertheless there is protocol to follow, so…" she reached into a drawer and handed them the adoption formats. "Let me talk to Heather, see what she thinks. If she agrees, you get to take her with you for a trial period of three months, while we do a background study. We will visit you or you can come to us, if you wish, and if all is working well… she can and will stay with you."

Heather was brought in ten minutes later, and her eyes turned from Emma to Killian in disbelief. "Are you…. guys… serious?"

"Are you kidding, kid?" Emma smiled. "I know Killian can tell a heck of a story, but I never saw anyone pay attentions so intently to him as he spoke of one." She huffed. "Besides, I know what you're feeling and…" She shrugged. "You don't HAVE to go into the system." She felt her own eyes fill with tears. "I did and… Well, I would have loved it if I had had someone just… come to the rescue."

"It's for real, lass." Killian added. "We've the room, we've a great, big, crazy family, a large house… you would have an older brother and a younger sister and one more coming." He shrugged. "Of course, you're not obligated to accept, but I can assure you that if you did, we would do all in pour power for you to be happy and well provided for and…"

"I'D LOVE TO GO WITH YOU GUYS! THANKS! THANKS SO SO SO MUCH!" Heather smiled, tears also forming in her eyes.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Early in the morning, Lilly, Snow and David were cracking their hard-boiled eggs in the large kitchen table. Henry had stayed over with Regina and had called earlier that morning to say he was on his way home now.

"Dey come home now…" The little girl quipped.

David looked up at her. "What? Who?"

"Henry?" Snow chewed with a grin.

"Aye, but…." she shook her head, stuffing her spoon into the egg with her clumsy little hand. "Mommy n' daddy…"

Snow looked up at her husband. "Wow… they really didn't take a week?"

David sighed and was about to say something when they heard the front door open and slam shut. Henry made a beeline to the kitchen. He reached them with a grin. "So… is THAT the surprise you were talking about, Lilly?"

The little girl chuckled and shrugged, a wide grin plastered on her face as she tucked in for yet another spoonful of egg yolk.

Snow and David turned to look at Henry. "Well, good morning to you too!" Snow huffed as she turned to deliver another spoonful of crushed apple into Neal's mouth, the boy (now clearly resembling his father in almost every way, except for the frizzy, black hair of his mom).

"Do you know something we don't, henry?" David winced, leaning his folded arms on the table.

"I'm a seer, gramps; I know what Lilly saw now, I know why mom and dad are coming home earlier…." Henry dumped his backpack on the floor and sat on the kitchen table, reaching out for another boiled egg. He must have been upset; Regina never let him go out without a proper breakfast, so he was just eating out of impulse.

Or maybe his sprouting teenage joints required some extra protein.

"You don't look too happy…" David shook his head.

Snow turned her face to him. "Is something wrong? Are they in danger?"

"Nope…" He sighed. "But let's just say this family just got… a liiiitle bit bigger… and crazier."

"Oh, my god, Emma did't go into early labour, did she?" Snow gasped.

Henry chuckled. "Naaa, nothing like that."

David and snow exchanged a look and Lilly hummed, grinning and wiggling her feet in the same style she had done when Emma had told Killian about the pregnancy.

"So… will you two stop being cryptic and share your enlightenment, you guys?" David added with a grin.

"Hedder…" Lilly screeched before bursting into laughter.

"Huh?" Snow sneered.

Henry sighed and put the egg down on the table. "They… are bringing someone in. From the outside. A girl." He shrugged. "I suppose mom couldn't resist it."

David and Snow exchanged another shocked look.

"Hedder, Hedder, Hedder!" Lilly bounced up and down, smiling fully.

"Yeah, that would be her." Henry nodded.

Snow looked at David and they both seemed to need time to process the news. "Okay, well…" Snow sighed and spooned up another scoop of baby food for Neal. "This is a big house and they have a lot to offer. Give one kid her best chance. It's not a bad thing."

Henry shrugged. "I suppose not…"

David huffed and placed a hand on Henry's shoulder. "What's upsetting you, Henry?"

The almost fourteen-year-old boy looked up at his granddad. "Not upset. At all. Just wondering how they're gonna tell that girl that her grandparents will be Snow White and Prince Charming and that her dad is Captain Hook… and don't even get me started on the rest of Storybrooke."

Lilly huffed and Henry looked at her. The girl wrinkled her nose.

"What is it, sis?"

"No fear." She smiled. "She is good."

Henry chuckled. "Ok, but she's still normal… I mean, we're all normal, but… no wait… we're not normal. What if Lilly poofs away in front of her and she runs away in a fit of panic and then we will have the outside world coming in here and figuring out something's wrong, and we all wind up encased like the X-Men?"

Snow reached out for him. "I'm sure it will be ok, Henry. As long as she feels loved…"

"She's still in for a shock."

"HENDY!"

"Wow! Why the heck are you yelling at me, Lilly?" Henry looked up at her.

The little girl smiled at him again. "Book."

That was all Henry needed to hear for him to regain his smile. "Yeah, that's right! The book! If it gets too crazy for her, the book can do it for her! Worked with both my mom and I!" He stood up and kissed Lilly's head. "Now listen, sis, for the first few days, NO magic, NO poofing, NO dressing grandpa up like Donkey Kong… Ok?"

Lilly nodded and went back to her egg.

Snow White made one hell of a hard-boiled egg.


End file.
